Fire Emblem Fates: Riptide
by Mitsuki Horenake
Summary: She has a choice to make: retain the name Elizabeth and remain with her family in Nohr, or reclaim her name of Michiko, and fight alongside her birth family in Hoshido. It's a choice she finds herself unable to make, but a spark of unknown forces make those choices for her. For now...she must live as both of them.
1. The Ties that Bind our Decisions

**Yeah, it has been a long while since I had actually written a fanfic, but I'm now getting that bug back again. Hopefully, you don't really mind the rustiness of it all.** **If you're wondering what the Avatar looks like in this story, it's the image that's used as the cover of the story.**

 **/=+=/**

There was fighting around her. And yet there was little noise registering to her.

When she had opened her eyes, she was in a grassy meadow. There were soldiers all around her, fighting and flying their country banners. She had recognized both of them, knew them by heart, and yet she couldn't bring herself to actively register them. She turned her head and saw soldiers rushing toward each other, weapons at the ready. Some had been sticking out of the crowd, somehow deciding not to wear helmets to protect their faces. They moved too fast for her mind to register. It was then that a bright light flashed into the sky. Her head quickly turned to face it, and from that light two shadows jumped away from it. A person and a horse?

"Come on, Michiko! We've got work to do!"

She turned her head and saw that a soldier was charging toward her, axe held tightly in his grasp. It happened so quickly that she didn't even have time to grab her blade in retaliation. Suddenly, a large shadow jumped in front of her and the axe had been blocked. Her mind registered the event, and realized that the shadow was coming from a winged Pegasus and the rider on top of it. It was a young woman with short, bright red hair, holding a naginata in her hand. She had turned her focus away from the tipped soldier and turned her head back to the confused young woman beside her.

"Hey…Michiko? What's the matter with you?" The young rider tilted her head. "You seem distracted."

"…I guess I am…" She responded, turning her head and seeing the fights before her.

"Hey look. If you're worried about getting hurt, don't be!" The rider smiled. "All of your siblings are here with you! The Nohrians don't stand a chance!"

She blinked and turned her head around to see that there were two other figures with her. One of them was a very young girl wearing mysterious robes, clutching onto a healing staff. She seemed extremely nervous of the fights before her, to the point where the woman couldn't help but wonder why she was here in the first place. Next to her was a young man with long silver hair, holding a bow in his hand and seemingly scanning the crowd for a target that he could easily take out. Like the rider, he seemed like he was ready to fight to the death for his kingdom against Nohr.

Wait…they're fighting against Nohr?

"We're…fighting against…? Wait, but I thought-"

"Here he comes again!"

Her head turned again and saw that the soldier was charging back for a second round. This time, she was ready. She quickly jumped out of the way and slashed toward him. It was a blow that he wouldn't be able to survive. As they both landed onto the ground, she watched as the body crashed onto the ground. That man is no more. This group is safe. They can relax for now.

There was another roar of energy, and her attention was pulled toward an event just beyond the river. Two men were talking to each other, swords tight in their hands. These must be the men that had produced the light before. One of them was on the ground and clad in bright red armor, brown hair protruding everywhere and going down to his knees. The other was clad in black and sporting a cape, sitting on his horse and moving a bit of his yellow hair out of the way. She couldn't help but squint. That man on the horse was…?

"I demand to know why you Nohrian dogs are invading Hoshido!" The one on the ground yelled over the crowds. "Was that cowardly attack on my people **your** doing as well, princeling?"

"…I have nothing to say to you. Surrender now." The one on the horse replied. "If you lose, you will die here."

They continued their attack, using weapons that she couldn't even register having ever seen before. The spectacle is enough to take her breath away. After what felt like mere seconds, both of them were too exhausted to go on. Her mind then pulled her attention toward three similar figures from the other side of that island. All of them were mounted on an animal, with the exception of the purple-haired woman who was on a wyvern. Standing next to her was a young girl around the same age as the one holding onto the healing staff. Her hair was tied into long pigtails and wore a long, black dress. Her hands seemed to fumble at the strains of her steed.

"Oh no! The bridge collapsed!" She panicked. "How can we help our brother now?"

"Not to worry, Elise." The purple-haired woman responded. "This royal blood in our veins is still good for something!"

"Then you must have seen a Dragon Vein, Camilla."

The final one walked forward on his horse, looking at the wyvern. He had short blond hair and pure black armor, adorned by the cape that hung on his shoulders. The collar was so tall that you could hide half your face behind it. It made him look…rather ridiculous, if she could say so herself. But they looked strangely familiar, like she had known them all her life. Why can't she remember them right now…?

The wyvern lady flew over to the river and raised her hand up in the air. Suddenly, the air became tense as if it was calling for something…and then dry as a bone. She gasped as the strange woman had somehow summoned an entire fireball out of thin air, and watched as she threw it toward the river. It made direct contact, and it instantly dried up the water. She couldn't believe it. How could there be a magic so powerful as to do that…?

"The Nohrian army used a Dragon Vein to dry up the river!" The rider next to her exclaimed, almost as if to answer the question she had in her head. "But I thought only royals held that power…"

 _Royals…royalty. Yes, that's right. Those three on the other side of the river were the prince and princesses of Nohr…_

"Yeah, which means that there must be some real big shots over there." The archer next to her finally spoke up. "Suits me just fine. I've always wanted to use a Nohrian royal for target practice!"

"Well, this isn't good…stay focused, Michiko." The rider turned to her. "The Nohrians brought their heavy hitters this time!"

She turned her head and watched the battle unfold before her. The fights were intense and bloody…somewhat hard to look at, if she was to be honest with herself. What were they fighting about? What was the point of all this? Was this a land dispute? Was this perhaps a provocation on the Nohrian's side? Or did it have something to do with her…? With Michiko…?

"A-are you hurt, Michiko?" The girl in robes was finally talking to her. "Here, let me heal your wounds!"

A wave of relief and comfort fell upon her, and she turned her head to see that she was indeed being healed by the girl in robes, doing a simple twirl of the wrist. It was strange…the last time she saw someone work with a twirl of the wrist, it was due to her being on a horse. Wait, horse…? She held her head in confusion. Half of the things that are going on aren't sinking in properly. It's as if she's forgetting important information.

"Oh n-no! An enemy!"

She turned her head and saw that it was another Nohrian soldier that had slipped through the cracks. The archer immediately jumped between him and the girl, but still stayed in between the girl and herself. He pulled up his bow and started to aim for the soldier, and that's when she realized that he didn't pull out an arrow for it…or even had a string on the bow, for that matter. What was he planning on doing with this?

"Listen: this is how we're going to do this." He stated. "I can shoot him from here. You take him out while he's distracted. Got it?"

She nodded in response. Her voice didn't feel like working today. She crouched down at the ready, waiting for the signal to go. Instantly, she sees a strange string of energy form from the bow, and he started pulling out a magical arrow from the bow. She couldn't help but stare at it in amazement. There was no other bow in existence that could pull off something as strange as that! Perhaps he is talented in the magic arts as well?

He let go of the arrow, and right on cue she charged in straight after. It pierced his shoulder, forcing him to drop his spear and giving her the perfect opportunity to strike him dead in his tracks. Another body flops onto the floor, no longer a threat to the group she now stands with. She turned her head and saw the robed girl leaning onto the archer, in pure relief that she was going to be safe yet again.

"Good work!" The rider cheers from a while away.

"You were amazing, Michiko!" The robed girl adds, smiling shyly.

"That went well." The archer leaned on his leg and sighed. "Probably because SOMEONE gave you good advice." He looked back at her. "You're welcome, by the way."

"No time to talk!" The rider's Pegasus jumps up. "Let's see how Ryoma's doing!"

Everyone charged toward the two tired men in the middle, and she felt herself charging after them. As she was running, she felt something strange change from within her. Before this, she had a hard time connecting with the war around her. There was fighting, screaming, bloodshed, and yet she couldn't even bring herself to identify the banners that they were all fighting under. And yet, as her legs started to give out from running so fast, there was fear digging into her system. She was terrified of something…but of what?

Once she had gotten there, she saw that the rider had been able to get to the red-armored male, checking him out for heavy blows. He was reassuring her that he was all right before finally getting back onto his feet, surveying the area around him. The fighting was intensifying. The atmosphere was getting so thick that you could cut it with a knife. And it was finally starting to affect her as well.

"Michiko." The red-armored male turned to her. "I'm counting on you to keep Hinoka and the others safe."

She blinked in response. It seemed obvious that she was going to keep them safe. She had just done that, like, right before they got here. However, she realized that there were another sets of eyes gazing back at her. She turned her head and realized that the riders from before had now charged to check on the other male on the horse. He had to have been the eldest of the family. As she stared at them, the one that had fought the red-armored man had made eye contact with her. His gaze instantly softened.

"Elizabeth…!" The biggest smile crept onto his face. "Thank heavens we found you, and that you're alive and well!"

 _Elizabeth?_ But they were calling her-

"Quickly, come join us! Your family has come to take you home where you belong!" He continued.

Her face scrunched up in confusion. _I thought my family was…?_

"Quiet, Nohrian filth!" The red-armored male yelled out. "She is Michiko, my sister and a princess of Hoshido!"

"On the contrary! Elizabeth is MY sister and a princess of Nohr!"

Her head darted back and forth in confusion. Her name was Elizabeth _and_ Michiko? And she was both of their sisters at the same time? They didn't look like they were related at all, so one of them is clearly lying. But…which one was lying to her? Her eyes darted to the siblings surrounding them, and all of them seemed to have forgotten about the fight and were now showering her with love.

"Elizabeth! I was so worried about you! Don't ever wander away from me again!"

"I'm glad you're OK, Elizabeth. You must have the devil's own luck!"

"Yaaaay! We got our sister back!"

"Nohrian scum! First you kidnap her, now you lie to her?! Her name is not Elizabeth! She is Michiko, and she's MY sister, not yours!"

"You are mistaken. Her name is Elizabeth, and she's my sweet little sister. You may not have her."

Was this what this entire fight was about?

"Don't be fooled by their words, Michiko. You belong with your true family in Hoshido!"

What was her real name then?

"We have loved you and raised you since you were a child. Come home, little princess. We can live as a family once more!"

Elizabeth?

"Come home to Hoshido, Michiko!"

Michiko?

"No, Elizabeth! Nohr is your home!"

Elizabeth?

Michiko?

…

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…

…

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"… _ke up…"_

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	2. The Dark Kingdom of Nohr

"Time to wake up, Lady Elizabeth."

Her eyes slowly flickered open. Sleep had clearly been kind to her. Once her vision cleared, she saw that there was a maid standing above her. She had light blue hair tied up in a small pigtail, and she was smiling warmly back at her. Her eyes opened up more, and another maid quickly joined her in the vision. This time, she had a very light orange hair, and her pigtail was bigger than the other one.

"Hey, wake up, Lady Elizabeth!" The other maid said. "Up and at 'em!"

"…eh…? Uh…"

She slowly sat up in the bed and turned her neck to see the rest of the people in the room. With the two maids were two men, all with dark gray attire. In the back looked like an older man in black armor, a scar clear upon his wrinkled face. In front of him was a younger man with similar gray hair, and suited up in a flexible tuxedo. She turned her head again and blinked, trying to get the sleep out of her head, before turning her head to the window. No light was coming from it: it was pure as darkness outside.

"It's dark outside…" She turned her head to the old man in the back. "It's not morning, Gunter…"

"It is morning, dear princess. It may not look like it, though." The old man, Gunter, reacted, face stern. "It's time to get up. You have practice today."

Right. Sword practice. That means that Xander is coming to visit her. She couldn't help but wonder if he was going to be alone like the last time, or if he was going to bring the rest of them as well. It's been a while since everyone had come to visit her at the same time. It was always one or two at the most.

"I have taken the liberty of readying your armor, Lady Elizabeth…and pounding out the dents." The butler in front of Gunter stated. "They were much deeper than before…your brother is quite the fearsome opponent, isn't he?"

"He is…" Elizabeth swung her legs over the bed and tried to stand up… "Eh…I'm still kind of sleepy…"

"Oh, we can help you with that~" The blue-haired maid turned her attention to the one next to her. "Care to assist me, Felicia?"

"Of course, Flora~!" She responded.

Elizabeth slowly looked up and saw the two of them reach over and touch her cheeks. Instantly there was a massive chill that ran through her skin, waking her up immediately. She jumped back with a yelp, holding her cheeks with widened eyes to the bemusement of everyone else in the room.

"I'm up, I'm up!" Elizabeth stood up. "…I'm up."

"All right~! Well then, let us go, milady!" The maid known as Felicia smiled. "Prince Xander is waiting for you on the roof!"

 **/=+=/**

The walk to the roof was always a long one for her. Her room used to be on the floor just underneath the roof, but everyone pressured her to move her room a couple of floors downward just so she could get some exercise and stretching before her practice with Xander. It was probably for the best, since training while half awake is never a good thing, especially with solid weapons.

She passed a couple of maids and butlers on the way to the roof, nodding to them on her trek up the stairs. As she was walking, her butler was slowly helping her get her practice armor on. Jakob had basically mastered the art of working and walking at the same time. It would help due to her always sleeping in. By the time she was on the floor underneath the roof, her armor was completely on and fastened. Gunter stuck out a sheath with a Bronze Sword inside, and Elizabeth quickly drew it out.

"It's still intact…after the last time." She quickly inspected it.

"Don't worry about the blade, milady. I have already checked to make sure that it can withstand a decent force." Jakob stated. "It will be more than enough for you to face your brother."

"Right~ my brother."

Her mind wandered back to the dream that she had. The dream where she was in that grassy meadow and those people were calling her by that strange name…"Michiko"…and that they were her siblings? She wondered if Garon really had so many children that he had to send a bunch of them away just because he didn't quite like them.

She shook her head. _No, they couldn't have been my siblings_. For one thing, their attire was completely different from the ones that she currently wears. From what she has read in her library, it was pretty clear that those people came from Hoshido, the country far unto the east. A land where there would actually be grass and a sun in the sky. She was not born in this area; she was born in this dark castle, hidden from the rest of the world, deep within the kingdom of Nohr. There would be no way that she, a Nohrian, would be related to Hoshidans…important looking ones too.

 _My name is Elizabeth. I have four siblings, and all of them come from the country of Nohr._ She thought to herself. _I am not a Hoshidan. All of that was just a dream obtained from reading too much._ She might have to lay off the romance novels.

Finally, she has reached the roof. She watched her servants disappear back into the castle before walking further onto the roof. Immediately in front of her was a man with blond hair moved back by a headband and his hands behind his back. He was wearing black armor and a cape whose collar reached almost to the top of his head. She never understood why he wanted to wear outfits like that. What was stranger was that he wasn't on his horse for once, unlike the man next to him.

Now THAT man…the one who bothered to bring his horse to a training session…his face had intimidation written all over it. He was also with short, blond hair, but instead of a headband it was held by a black tiara, the crown of the head prince. He was wearing his black armor underneath his magenta cape, giving him even more of a regal feel to it. As she was approaching them, he was grooming his horse and seemingly talking to the other man about something she couldn't hear. They both stopped talking once she showed up within view.

"You're finally awake, Elizabeth." The one with the collar smiled. "Did you give your servants a hard time?"

"No, not this time, Leo." She pouted. _He really cannot stop sassing, can he?_ "I actually got out of bed on my own volition."

"Is that code for _**you didn't punch Jakob**_ this time?"

"Leo, noooo…"

"I'm glad that you two are having a good morning chat, but that's not why we're here." The one with the horse went onto his saddle. "Do you have your sword?"

"Of course, brother." She pulled out her blade. "I'm ready for training today."

"All right then." He drew out his own blade. "You know the rules."

"Yeah, I do." She steadied herself.

"All right then. Here I come!"

Her eyes hovered over the blade still in his hilt, a bit tense about it. That was Siegfried, the black blade. It was one of the holiest weapons in the entire Nohrian kingdom, said to tear down an entire army that faced against it. At least, that's what the rumors she would hear would say. A sword that powerful…no wonder it had chosen Xander, the heir to the throne, to be its wielder…

"Too slow!"

"Eh? _**GAH!"**_

One slice later and she fell onto her knees. Xander really was an amazing warrior to fight against. She slowly looked up and saw that Xander had stopped his onslaught for now, with Leo walking forward in order to assess the damage of his attack. After a few long seconds, he couldn't help but crack a smile.

"A clean slice that brings a warrior to her feet…that's our brother for you." He nods gently. "You won't beat the strongest knight in Nohr if you keep sleeping all day, Elizabeth."

 _Yeah, I figured as much._ She looked up to the two of them. _It's almost as if I haven't been training between personal visits._

"Giving up so soon, Elizabeth?" Xander asks, petting his horse. "I expect more of you, a princess of Nohr. Pick up your blade and try and hit me again."

"Uh…Xander…" Elizabeth sighed in mild annoyance. "You don't have to be so hard on me…we're just training."

"We train like this so that we can defend ourselves from our enemies. You know of the war that we are currently in, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do…but it's not like I'm going to be let out here to fight anytime soon.

Xander shook his head. Elizabeth was always focusing on her training, but it's always apparent that she never took it as seriously as they wanted her to. As he watched over her, he could see her dusting off the dirt from her cape and wiping her blade of anything that would dull the shine. It's like she doesn't even stretch before training _(a common thought, given that she definitely woke up before coming here)_. He sighed. There's only one thing that would get her motivated right now…

"Father has been tracking your training progress."

"He has? I haven't heard of it." Elizabeth responding, finishing her daily cleaning routine. "Then again…I guess he would be the one that would have told you to train me in swordsmanship."

"Yes, he was the one who told me to train you…and so far he seems rather disappointed."

"…oh…" She looked down. Being confined in a fortress would cause quite a damper on training opportunities.

"He claims that you haven't been improving in a while. If you can't land a hit on me today…he may never permit you to leave the Northern Fortress."

"Wait, _**never?"**_

"Ever."

"Did Father really say that to you?" Elizabeth immediately straightened herself. "That's insane!"

"Motivated now? That's good. Use that motivation to best me, little princess." Xander's horse neighed and leaned back. "If you are to see the outside world from beyond these windows…defeat me. Prove to both me and father that all the time I have devoted into training you has not been in vain!"

"Right! I'm defeating you here and now!" _TOO MUCH PRESSURE RIGHT NOOOOOOOOOW._

An entire sparring match that will decide whether or not she can finally see the world beyond her fortress, against a man that she couldn't even hit before…the doubt started to build up on her as they both stared each other down. Xander was being the gentleman this time, waiting for her to make the first move. It gives her more than enough opportunity to stop her wavering willpower. Still, with a chance to finally leave, she really must go beyond the training that he has given him. No, she'll have to resort to tactics as well: the training that Leo has given her between her strikes with the blade.

 _ **The number one thing about tactics is that it revolves around assumptions and plans.**_ He would tell her. _**Assume what the enemy will do, and plan your attack accordingly.**_

The first thing she looked at was the horse. Xander was always so skilled with his horsemanship as well as his swordsmanship. The one time she was able to knock him off the horse _(a complete accident due to a "slip up" by Camilla)_ , the fight ended up even harder and she was finished immediately. If anything, the horse is a handicap holding him back. Then again, maybe knocking him off the horse was going to constitute as a win state for her? _I'll just assume that as a yes and keep planning._

He's right-handed, his blade firmly in the grip. She had tried attacking him from the left, but that's been deflected off numerous times as well. However, the only way to land a first blow would be to attack him on the left…the "weak spot". Maybe she would have to try fighting with her left hand this time; that would be something he wouldn't expect. Besides, her left hand was for writing, not for fighting. _It's a risk, but I'm willing to try it out_.

Based on all of that, she started planning the action in her head. She was going to attack first, using her left hand to swing her blade and attack Xander at his left. It should be able to hit him no problem _(considering if he isn't aware of her ambidextrousness…which given that she would always train with her right hand is a valid possibility)_ , leaving him stunned enough to be able to dodge his counter attack.

 _All right…switch hands while running to him, attack from the left, it should give me enough time to dodge…_ She took a deep breath. _That's your game plan, Elizabeth. Focus…focus…_

It was game time.

She immediately ran forward toward Xander, who braced himself for her attack. Her plan had no problem at all. Stay right in the middle of view, both hands on her blade, then veer left and swing with her left hand. She kept repeating this plan over and over again, hoping that this time she could actually get it to happen. Just one blow on Xander should be enough for her…!

She jumps left. Xander's head turns to face her. She immediately grabs her sword in her left hand and swings toward him, landing a blow on his left arm. He recoils back a bit, and she grins. _Yes, this should be enough to-_

"I saw right through you!"

Halfway through her jump, she sees that he wasn't recoiling back in shock. Instead, he was rearing his arm back for the counter blow, allowing his arm to get hit in the meantime. She had been the one that had been predicted. As she was landing, his blow hit squarely on her back, and she fell to the ground. Fortunately, she was the master of getting back up and rolling away before he could land another blow. As she got up, she could see a small smile on Xander's lips.

"You're actually using your other hand for once…it would have worked if there was a stronger force behind your swing." Xander readied his blade. "You swing too timidly to land a blow. You must genuinely try to kill me to win this."

Granted, the only reason why she could swing like that is due to the fact that these blades are dull. Actually killing him would be a rather horrible thing to do first thing in the morning.

Elizabeth backed up a bit and reassessed the damage that Xander had done onto her. She's pretty sure that he suffered a mere scratch, while she suffered pretty heavily from the counter attack. One more blow like that and she could kiss her chance of exploration good bye. She was going to have to change her approach…jumping to the left and right is not going to help her at this moment. Perhaps…unorthodoxly?

She charged at him again, hand tight over the hilt. Xander tensed back, immediately ready for her to jump to the sides and deal a safer attack. But this time, she's going to go crazy. She immediately jumped forward, charging straight toward him, and slashed him down the shoulder in midair. He immediately flies off his horse as she careens forward in her jump, pulling off a roll to avoid hitting her head on the pavement. She immediately jumps back to her feet, ready for a counter attack, and saw only Xander smiling and clapping at her.

"Well done, Elizabeth." He stood up. "You knocked me off my horse."

"Yeah, I did…" _At the expense that I could have missed the trajectory and end up snapping your horse's neck in half._ "So I'm guessing that's the win state for this match?"

"Yes, it is." Xander answered, sheathing his blade. "You won this match."

"Yes! I finally did it!" She immediately cheered, fists in the air.

"You're getting stronger and stronger every day, Elizabeth." Xander smiled, joining the side of his younger brother.

""Well, of course I am. I mean, it's all thanks to you and your…uh… **tough love."** She giggled in response. "I mean, training with big brother, the best knight in Nohr, would definitely give a girl some good strength~"

"I would have to disagree with you. You seem to have a natural talent for swordsmanship as well as tactical planning." He responded. "In fact, I predict that someday, you could be the greatest knight in all of Nohr."

"Awwwww, you're just saying that, big brother~" Elizabeth blushed, swaying back and forth. "You don't have to tease me like that. I still have a long way to go, after all."

"You know I don't joke about matters as serious as this, Elizabeth. I mean everything that I'm saying." Xander replied with his typical, studious face. "You could be the one to bring light to our kingdom...the one forever shrouded in darkness."

"…Xander…?"

Elizabeth couldn't help but be confused on what he's talking about. She's still very subpar when it comes to swordsmanship, only got away with one planned attack out of the thousands of times that she trained against him, and even has a hard time talking to new people _(given that the newest person she ever talked to was when she was a child and hence she rationalized that she would have no idea how to talk to new people)_. Not only that, but she's not even the heir to the throne. Wouldn't she have to be a queen to do that…?

"Typical Xander, thinking too simple. You do realize that there's more to true strength than simple swordsmanship, right?" Leo interjected, facing her.

"Leo…" _Why yes, yes I do realize that. You drilled it into my head._ "You know that-"

"Haha…calm yourself, brother." Xander smiled at him. "You can be so competitive when you don't have to be."

"You've told me that many times, brother." Leo responded with a sigh.

"Because you've never really listened and taken it to heart." He replied with a stern glance. "You are a talented mage with formidable magical abilities, as well as swordsmanship."

"Hm…" Leo looked to Xander with a competitive smile. "Well, you know, just remember that pointy metal sticks are not the only path to power."

"It's the combination of physical strength and mental capabilities that create a path to power as well as a stable kingdom~" Elizabeth responded by word. "Power is not enough to defeat your enemy: it's the use of your own power as well as the mind to see the enemy's weak points and strike when they aren't looking!"

"You remember those words rather well, sister." Leo looked impressed with his smug grin.

"I have to. You practically drilled them into my head in the same way Xander drilled in my training~" She giggled before straightening her face. "Oh, speaking of which, there was something I wanted to tell you Leo."

"Oh? Something that will derail this obviously important conversation that we're having right now, sister?"

"Yeah, actually…" She pointed at him. "Your collar's inside out."

His studious face immediately broke, and he went into a panic as he checked the cloak that he was wearing. Sure enough, the tag was sticking out at the back of his neck, and the crest of the Nohrian kingdom, the one he would always wear with pride, was hidden between the cloth and his back. Both Xander and Elizabeth laughed at the spectacle of his panic.

"It appears that someone got dressed while half-asleep today." Xander stated through his chuckle.

"Aw, don't be like that, Xander~" Elizabeth laughed. "I got my servants to dress me up for me~"

"Uggghhh! Don't laugh about it!" Leo ran to the edge of the roof. "Why didn't you say something earlier!?"

"I would have, but I was busy training of course~" She responded.

"Sorry, Leo~" Xander chuckled. "But it's moments like this that make you so lovable."

"Oh so very lovable~"

" _ **D-don't you be parroting everything Xander says again, sister!"**_

"Awww…but it's trueeeeee!"

The two continued their laugh until Elizabeth caught Xander staring at something behind her. She turned her head and saw that two new figures had joined them on the roof, and that they weren't the servants in the castle. One was a woman with flowing purple hair and…large assets hidden by her purple armor. It was always enough to make her jealous that she couldn't have anything like that, considering that it must be something in the blood. Maybe she's a late bloomer or something?

Accompanying her was a smaller girl, the youngest out of the five standing on the roof. She had long, yellow hair with purple lines in them, tied up into long pigtails. It contrasted her black dress decorated with pink bows and lace, as well as her overall girlish demeanor. They both were looking straight at Elizabeth, happy smiles on their faces, as a smile crept upon her own face as well.

"Camilla~! Elise!" Elizabeth smiled. "You two came over as well~"

"Of course we would, darling. We all wanted to come and watch you train." The woman named Camilla brushed her purple hair out of her eyes as she carefully observed her. "Are you all right, Elizabeth? Did you get hurt during practice?"

"Only the normal amount of hurt that would come during practice." She responded. "Nothing new, really."

"Aw…we can't have that. You should be in tip top shape while all of us are here!" She turned her head to Xander. "You didn't activate the vein, Xander?"

"I didn't see a need to. She seems perfectly able to stand on her own." He responded.

"Vein…?"

"A dragon vein, Elizabeth." Leo butted in, finally with his fixed collar. "You know, the ones with the untapped magic."

"Oh…right, of course."

"I'll just go ahead and activate this right now for you to heal with. Now stand over there and let me get it all set up for you."

"All right, Camilla."

As Camilla guided her to the source of the vein, she watched as she raised her hand above her head and activated the dragon vein. Immediately, a light came out of her fingertips and landed in the area where Elizabeth was standing. The light was fixing her up rather well. This really must be the power of the dragon vein. Maybe that dream with those strange Hoshidans had some logic after all. Maybe a dragon vein really could drain a riverside…

"It's always so cool to see a dragon vein get activated!" The younger girl stated, jumping up and down. "I rarely see it happen, too!"

"The dragon veins respond to the dragon blood inside us, Elise." Xander responded. "One day, you will activate dragon veins as well."

"That sounds amazing! Doesn't it, Elizabeth?"

"It sure does." She smiled back, walking out of the healing circle. "Yep, tip top shape."

"Is there anything else you need, sweetie?" Camilla asked. "Please, don't worry about me. Tell me if there's anything else."

"No no, it's fine. That's all I needed, I swear." Elizabeth smiled. _I mean, I don't really need the dragon vein also, but I can't really complain about that._

"Don't hold anything back, sister! I was worried for you too!" Elise chirped at her. "I care very deeply about big sister!"

"I know you do, Elise~" Elizabeth couldn't help but giggle at her bounciness. She couldn't help but wonder if she got most of her personality from her, what with all the happiness and cheerfulness. "You wouldn't be visiting me this often if you didn't, right?"

"Of course." Elise looked at her with a smile. "Do you like it when I visit?"

"I like it when anyone visits, really! I'm not allowed to leave the fortress, so visits are all I get to look forward to!" Elizabeth smiled. "But I get extremely happy when you're the one visiting, Elise!"

"Yaaaay! I'm glad to hear that!" She immediately went to hug her. "Spending time with my sister always makes me happy!"

Aaaaaand she tackled her so hard in the hug that they practically spun in a circle. Elizabeth actually found her footing well enough to stay standing up and swing her around long enough for her to let go. Gods forbid they fell onto the ground. Wouldn't want Camilla to be panicking about it again after all the effort she went into helping her before…

"I love you so much, big sister!" Elise chirped again. "I love you more than anything in the whole wide wooooorrrllllddd!"

"…sigh…Elise…" Leo rubbed his forehead. "When are you going to start acting like the adult that you technically are?"

"Well hopefully that is never, Leo. I for one think her cheery demeanor is a nice change of place in this gloomy kingdom." Camilla smiled as she looked at Elise. "We need all the love and support that we can get."

"Yeah…all the love that we can get…"

Elizabeth trailed a bit on her words as she watched the hijinks of her siblings before her. They really are the one thing that kept her going throughout these times. She had lost her memory so long ago, with no connection to those of the outside world, and as a result these four were the only constants in her life. They were the ones who taught her about the world. How to fight. How to read. How to trust. How to be a family…

"You've all been…so kind and patient when I lost my memory…" The others stopped what they were doing as Elizabeth spoke. "You were all everything that I needed to live…heck, I didn't even really mind being quarantined in this small place for the majority of my life as long as you were all around. I'm so grateful that you're all here…as my family."

"We are all grateful to have you as family as well, Elizabeth." Xander smiled. "Though speaking of which, I-"

"No no no, let me tell her Xander!" Camilla piped in. "We have wonderful news for you, Elizabeth! Father asked you to take us back to the capital!"

Elizabeth's eyes widened in shock. "Wait, that means…!"

"You can finally leave this drafty fortress that you've lived in for so long!" Camilla laughed and smiled. "You must have been so lonely, being separated from the world like this…but now you're free to see the world!"

"Isn't that wonderful?!" Elise piped up, jumping up and down like it was a surprise for her.

"…it is…wow, I'm…I'm leaving…I'm finally leaving this place…" Elizabeth turned to everyone. "Maybe now I can join you all as a warrior of Nohr?"

"There will be plenty of time for discussion when you meet up with Father." Xander started walking to his horse. "Let us depart at once. The sooner you see him, the better."

 _The sooner I get to leave this place._ Elizabeth smiled. _The sooner I can finally live my life…away from this prison. The sooner that I can be free…_


	3. The Door that Leads to Windmire

It was an extremely quick trip down the stairs of the fortress to the stables. Yet Elizabeth couldn't help but look at it over again as she passed through it for the last time. Every crack in the wall, every dent in the rug, every door left open…it felt strange how much she had longed for the outside world and yet how much she loved staying within these walls. How it had basically become her life, a strange life indeed.

"How does it feel, little princess?"

"Hm?" She turned her head and saw Xander walking alongside her, looking at the other siblings messing around in front of them. "Feel for what?"

"How does it feel to finally leave this place? The fortress that you've called home for so long?"

"…I don't know. I mean, I'm extremely happy that I'm leaving, it's just…" She turned her head around. "It's the only place that I've ever known and understood. Everything I've learned all started from here…it's like leaving home for the first time."

"You will just be leaving one home for another, little princess. This one will make sure that you're never alone again." Xander patted her shoulder. "You will only gain from this new change, Elizabeth."

"Yes, of course. Thank you, Xander."

They finally reached the stables of the fortress, where there were a couple of people preparing the horses for their departure. One of them was a stable girl, bearing bright yellow eyes and striking blue hair. It was a different shade from Flora's, who was lighter and softer in blue hair. As they walked past her, she made eye contact with the stable girl, and she bowed her head.

"I heard that you are finally leaving the fortress, Lady Elizabeth." She stated. "You must be very happy."

"I'm very happy, indeed." Elizabeth confirmed. "Thank you for asking, Lilith."

"Gunter asked me to come with you so that I can look after your horses." She responded.

"Oh really? That's great! Glad to hear it!" Elizabeth smiled, hands on her hips. "You've been in here for about as long as I have! I'd miss you if you weren't coming along too!"

"Heehee, thank you Lady Elizabeth~"

"Are the horses ready for travel?" Xander asked, looking upon them.

"Yes, milord. Everything seems ready, and even the horses seem to be excited for the trip." She responded. "They're all very fond of Lady Elizabeth…probably from all her time in the stables."

"Our little Eliza always seemed to be sensitive to animals." Camilla smiled, petting her own horse in ready for the trip. "Such a kindhearted soul…why, he even nursed a baby bird back to health that one time!"

At that remark, Lilith's expression dropped a bit. She seemed to try and hide it from the others, but Elizabeth could see it even in her shoulders and posture. It was strange how easy should could read someone who lived here just as long as she did. She walked up to her and gently shook her, which was able to bring her back to reality.

"Is something wrong, Lilith?"

"No…nothing's wrong." She responded.

"Well, duh! She obviously is going to miss you Elizabeth!" Elise chirped. That's why she's sad!"

"But she's coming with us."

"Oh…well in that case, she's sad that she can't have you all to herself, then!" Elise turned to Lilith. "You were always so fond of brother, were you not?"

"Uh…"

"All right. As gripping as this conversation is going, we mustn't keep Father waiting." Xander got back on his black steed. "We should be on our way now."

"Right."

As Elizabeth got on her horse, she saw an older man walking past them and talking to the servants staying in the fortress. It was Gunter, all right, talking to the servants and making sure that everyone had their duty despite the master of the household no longer being in the house. He seemed to be talking to Flora as she was fixing her cape over the horse.

"Flora, you will remain here to watch over the fortress. Felicia, Jakob and I will accompany Lady Elizabeth." He ordered. "We may be gone for some time. Take care of the place in the meantime."

"Of course. You can leave this all in my care." She responded, smiling. "Take good care in your travels, Lady Elizabeth."

"Thank you, Flora. I hope we meet again soon…and not in this old place!" Elizabeth responded.

She smiled, waiting until her two retainers got on their horses for her to finally join her siblings at the entrance of the fortress. Xander and Leo were already in the front, watching and waiting for her to join them. Elise had waved them all down for the four of them to join them, and once they all reunited they started their long journey back to the capital.

 **/=+=/**

The world really did look bigger once she had left the Northern Fortress.

As she followed the group back to the capital, her eyes began to wander to the scenery around her. The ground was a strange shade of purple, and the trees were just as void of life. She had read in her books that usually the trees would have something called "leaves" on them, and the ground would be covered with grass, and they would both usually be a bright green color. Gunter had to show her a green fabric from the east in order for her to know what _green_ was.

Her eyes trailed toward the sky. That, too, was as black as night, covering the entire sky above her. However, the moon was extremely bright, piercing the dark skies and covering everything in a beautiful wave of moonlight. It just made the dark colors around her bright and sharper, and as a result it all stuck out in her mind a lot more than just seeing it through her window. The bright moon was Nohr's replacement of the sun, a firm decision on how to dictate morning and night. It's helped her and her servants operate a daily routine, but the moon looked very lonely in the sky.

They continued their travels to the capital, and soon she saw a dull shade of green on the ground. Her eyes honed in on the color and upon focusing upon it, she realized that it was actually grass. Real life grass. She had never seen grass on the ground before. Her head remained fixated on this new development as she heard a chuckle behind her.

"Oh, is the ground really that fascinating to you, darling?"

"Well…it's the first time I've ever seen grass on the ground." She responded, turning to Camilla. "There was never any grass around the Northern Fortress, you know that."

"Well, why didn't you ask for some greenery before? I would have been more than happy to bring over a few plants for you to take care of."

"You know how busy I am. I wouldn't have been able to care for them, and the other servants would have been caring for them in my stead. Besides, from what I heard, they would have died soon after you take them out." Elizabeth smiled, returning her gaze to the road. "I don't want to give them more work than what is necessary."

"You wouldn't have to worry about that, Lady Elizabeth." Jakob called from behind, coming up from her right side. "We are all there for your care and well being."

"I know…it's just that as your master, I have to care for my servants as well." Elizabeth turned to him, observing how his silver hair seemed to be so regal even as a servant. "I don't want all of you to push yourselves. I'm only one person."

"Yes, but one person with enormous power and responsibility." Camilla turned her head back to the road. "You might be one person, but you are one person that has many people care for you. If you truly want their well being, you just have to look out for yourself once in a while. Your happiness is their happiness…like your happiness is my happiness."

"Oh, sister, I know that. You've told me that so many times."

"And I'll tell you that many times in the future." She giggled. "Oh, will you look at that? We're just about there."

Elizabeth turned her head and saw a large brick wall before her. Yes, this has to be the capital that they were talking about. But as they were getting closer and closer, Elizabeth noticed something interesting: there didn't seem to be anything taller than the very walls that they are standing before. The walls seemed to stretch beyond the two long horizons, but the actual castle shouldn't have been so deep inside the city…

"Where are the other buildings…?" She turned her head.

"They're all further inside, Elizabeth." Leo turned toward her. "Haven't you seen Windmire before?"

"Not really…honestly, with all the maps that I've been seeing, I don't think I've ever seen an actual city before…"

"Well, get ready to have your mind blown, sis!" Elise chirped, heading to the gate door. "Heeey! Open the gate! It's us! We've been summoned by our father, King Garon!"

After a few long minutes of wait, the gate opened up, and all of them started to head inside. Elizabeth turned her head and saw all of the buildings standing at the side of the road, lit with flames and bustling with city life as the townspeople went about their daily routine. The ones that were able to see the Royal Family passing through immediately focused all of their attention to them, and soon enough there were rows of people bowing to them as they headed toward the castle. She could hear the praises and cheers of the people as they pass them by in their walk.

It was then that it really did hit her on how important and influential the concept of a "royal member" was. Sure, the servants in her castle would always call her princess and treat her like a messiah, but it just FELT different. It was just a group of people that had lived with her for so long. They were ordered to follow her every command and to pamper her. But here, these were complete strangers that she had never seen before and would probably never see again, treating her almost exactly like her servants did. Then again, given that she had been hidden away for so long, they were probably only reacting this way to her siblings and are currently wondering who the random lady was riding in the middle of the pack. All she had to do was see the strange glances from a few of the people to confirm her suspicions.

The treatment continued on for a long while as they kept heading deeper and deeper into the city. It was as if the city itself was divided into sections, with them constantly passing wall after wall and going through check after check. There were even more whispers among the soldiers that would let them through, and from what she could gather they were gossiping about the new stranger among the family.

" _I have heard rumors about a fifth princess of Nohr hidden away in that strange fortress in the north…"_

" _Another one? I thought there were only four of them left."_

" _Well, look at how all of them are acting around her. She has to be that rumored princess, don't you think?"_

She never thought that she could be such a point of gossip. In fact, wasn't she supposed to be this gigantic secret of Nohr or something? That's what Elise had told her a couple of visits ago, after one of her many training sessions. Guess it's really hard to keep any type of secret in a realm filled with so many people living in it.

"We're finally here…" Xander turned his head to the final gate. "This is Castle Krakenberg…the heart of Windmire…and the mind of all of Nohr."

He immediately got off his horse, a move that made Elizabeth panic a bit and made her jump off her horse right after. The others came off their horses afterward and all gathered behind him as the final gate opened before them. Elizabeth couldn't handle it anymore and ran forward, looking to see the castle of her father and couldn't believe what she saw: the entire castle was built a few stories underground, the walls lit up in a warm orange light. She couldn't tell if they were actual lights or if they were actual windows to another realm of the castle grounds. Out of all the story books of castles and princes, this was the one image that she had never seen. Her eyes travelled down the lights and toward where the castle entrance would be.

"What do you think, little princess?"

"It's…it's amazing, big brother!" She cupped her face in happiness. "I never thought that the castle would be this cool! No wonder I didn't see this from the outside!"

"It's the Nohrian way of lighting up the entire castle, without the dark sky inhibiting the view." Leo walked up next to her. "Even if someone is able to get the castle surrounded, there are thousands of tunnels that lead to the outside. It's a perfect place for a castle."

"Yeah, yeah!" She jumped up and down. "The inside must be just as amazing as the outside, isn't it?"

"The inside is a place unlike anything you haven't seen before. It's nothing like your fortress!" Elise ran forward. "Come on! Let's go meet up with father!"

Everyone ran forward, eager to have father and daughter reunite. Elizabeth was about to follow them when she realized that Lilith was not among the crowd. She turned her head and saw her gathering up all of the horses to be placed in the stable just outside the gate. It looks she really was going to be taking care of the horses. At least she knows where they were going. She turned back around and went to join her family on the trek toward the castle.

And was it a trip going through the castle.

They really weren't kidding when they said that Castle Krakenberg was much bigger than that of her fortress. After so many twists and turns, Elizabeth couldn't help but worry that she was going to lose them in the hallways and end up wandering the hallways of the castle like an idiot. A horrible first impression to place on a father that she hasn't seen in such a long time.

 _Actually…when was the last time I saw father face-to-face?_

She kept following her siblings through the hallways as that question lingered through her mind. Her father, King Garon, would visit very sparsely and even then he would only ask for her progress in her training. The last time he came to her was at least five years ago, for her birthday. If anything, he didn't really feel like a father at all. Her siblings were the one that had raised her like a family. They were the ones that taught her how to fight, how to read, maybe even how to think. She tried to recall any detail about father that she knew, and all she could come up with is that he would talk bluntly and almost always in orders and commands.

 _Maybe this was just part of my training to be a proper Nohrian knight?_

He was the one who had sent Xander to train her in the art of swordsmanship. There was supposed to be a war going on against the enemy to the east. Maybe everyone had to train to be a warrior in order to be prepared for an invasion? Being a king means that he would have to prioritize his kingdom over other things, even his family. Perhaps the reason why he sent her away to that fortress was for the sake of keeping her away from the enemy on the off chance they invade and take over the castle?

 _Yeah, that had to be it…_

It was then that she found herself standing on one final pathway toward the heart of the castle. Everyone else was way ahead of her, and Elise was running after them, standing in the middle so that Elizabeth could see where they were going. She watched as she turned back around and waved her down, calling her to make sure that she was catching up, before running to catch up with the rest of them. After a few minutes of walking, she finally caught up to them, and Xander and Leo opened the door. She didn't register where they were, but all she could see was the figure standing on the opposite side of the room. He was standing tall and regal, sporting familiar black armor covered in a long cape. His skin was a strange grayish tone, and his hair was completely covered in a white color. It had been a long time since she had seen this, but she knew exactly who this person was.

It was her father, Garon. The king of all of Nohr.

 **/=+=/**

 **This is going to be a very slow build-up, I'm sorry to say. The thing is that I would rather set up character interactions that would run the story later than skip over the important story that everyone's seen before just to get to the good stuff.**


	4. The Gift of Ganglari

Even though it had been so long since she had seen her father, there really wasn't that much thrill going through her as she finally approached him from the other side of the room. She could hear her siblings follow her from behind, all puffed up and ready to bear witness to this grand reunion that had been years in the making. There was happiness in her, but oddly enough Elizabeth didn't feel extreme happiness like when her siblings would visit. She wondered why that would be.

 _No, this is your father, Elizabeth. You're just indifferent because he was rarely there for you._ She told herself. _He had to be there for his country. He most definitely cared for you and thought for you in the side._

She nodded in agreement to those thoughts. Yes, there was definitely a war going on. Garon had to take care of that above all else. The strange thing about this thought, however, was the fact that she has to constantly repeat it inside her head in order for it to truly stick to her, rather that accepting it as a truth by the get go. Why was it so hard for her to accept the truth…?

"I see that you've finally made it here safely, Elizabeth…" Garon stated in his formal tone.

"Yes, Father." _Strange. I was assuming that he would sound a bit happier than that._ "Long have I wished to see you again, and to finally see the castle of our great nation Nohr. It's almost as if I'm dreaming."

"You are not dreaming, daughter of mine. You are inside the great castle of Krakenberg. It is only thanks to your diligence that you are here, standing before me right now." Garon turned his head to Xander, standing next to her. "I have been told that you are now a warrior almost on par with Xander. This is good news to us, and to the kingdom you call home. You finally possess the strength to be an instrument of Nohr's power in this world."

"But Father…" Elise spoke up as she looked down, feeling extremely worried. "Would she be all right living outside the fortress like this?"

"I worry about this as well…" Camilla spoke up as well, brushing her hair out of her face. "Isn't it dangerous for Elizabeth to live outside the fortress' magic barrier?"

"Heh…I appreciate your concern, you two. But I'll be fine." Elizabeth turned to her sister, a smile on her face. "I've earned my way here, after all, and I'm ready to fight."

"Of course you're ready to fight." Garon spoke up, causing all attention to turn back to him. "You must be, knowing of the war against the kingdom of the east."

"The Kingdom of the East…" Elizabeth nodded. "The Kingdom of Hoshido. Yes, I know of it, Father."

"We of the royal family are descendents of the ancient gods, the First Dragons. As inheritors of that divine strength, we conquer those who would oppose us with ease." Garon clenched his fist in front of him. "One who learns how to wield this power can destroy an entire army of common troops."

 _The power of the First Dragons…_ She figured that it must have something to do with the Dragon Veins that everyone would talk about during their visits. Was this the power he was talking about?

"Xander, Camilla and Leo have already shown that they possess this power. I expect nothing less from you."

"I am aware of your expectations, Father. And I have trained every day to become more like my siblings." She bowed to him. "I will not let you down."

"Hm…you show promise. But promise can only get you so far." Garon nodded. "You will need a suitable weapon in order to serve Nohr. Allow me to give one to you."

He waved his hand, and instantly a weapon showed up in front of her, surrounded with purple smoke. It was a black, curved sword with a fancy silver hilt. The blade itself looked as if it was made out of hardened lava itself. Yet it was a blade that was unique only to her and her alone. Almost as if this was the equivalent of Xander's Siegfried. _Wait, was this a holy blade as well?!_

"This is Ganglari, a sword infused with magic from another world." Garon informed him. "With this blade, you will be able to crush the Hoshidan army with ease."

"T-thank you for this generous gift, Father!" She took the blade hovering in the air, admiring all the ways that it was unique. It was even the same height as Siegfried! "Wow…a sword for my very own…!"

"… _generous indeed…"_ Xander muttered underneath his breath.

"Now then…let us see you put this sword for this proper use." His gaze turned to behind her. "Bring out the prisoners!"

"Eh?"

She turned her head and saw a mass of soldiers moving around, almost as if they were organizing something behind the scenes and away from her view. After a few minutes, a group of people had been thrown out in the middle of the hall. They had mysterious attire and looked vastly different from the black armor that they wear currently. Yes, this had to be Hoshidan soldiers. Hoshidan…prisoners…?

Out of the crowd, two of them stood out to her. One of them was a tanned woman with white hair and bandages tying her chest together. She had strange marks on her face and seemed to snarl upon making eye contact with her. The other one was a man with blades on his forearms. He had a strange, green tone to his entire person, from his hair to his clothes. He was crouching down, almost as if he was preparing for something. Immediately, the others started to crouch down for a counter attack.

"These are prisoners from our most recent skirmish with Hoshido." Garon informed her as she walked toward them. "I want to see your power with my own eyes. Use that sword to strike them down."

 _Use this sword to punish the prisoners…_ She looked at the blade in her hand. _Well, I can't let Father down here…and everyone else is watching as well!_

"Worry not. I shall join you, milord." Gunter came out from the back and pulled out his lance. "My lance arm is rusty, but it should still be serviceable. I am at your command."

"I-I'll help too!" Felicia charged forward, brandishing her knives. "I'm as much as a bodyguard as a domestic, after all! _Then again, I'm pretty horrible as a domestic, so…"_

"I think those are more than enough to handle these prisoners." Jakob smiled, walking backward to join the rest of her siblings. "I believe that I will sit this one out for now…but do not hesitate to call me if you are in need."

"It won't be needed, Jakob." Elizabeth smiled. "I can handle them!"

The three of them readied their weapons, awaiting a reaction from the prisoners. It causes the Hoshidan prisoners to pull out their weapons as well, awaiting a counter attack. The woman in particular straightened her back and pounded at her chest, a large club in her right hand and leaning on her shoulder.

"I am Rinkah! Daughter of the Flame Tribe's honorable chieftain!" She called out with pride. "What is your name, Nohrian Princess?"

"Me?" She blinked. That's a strange thing to ask. Maybe it's an honor thing. "My name is Elizabeth."

"Elizabeth…heh, what a name for a lame looking princess."

"H-hey!"

It was then that she realized that the strange green-haired man had been staring at her this entire time. She figured that it was just analyzing the enemy for all the strengths and weaknesses, like any enemy would do before a fight would begin. But when they made eye contact, she felt as if she was being looked at for a completely different reason.

"And…you?" She remarked to him.

"…" He shook his head and readied himself again. "I am Kaze, a ninja of Hoshido. Show me what you can do."

She immediately readied herself, but on the inside she couldn't help but fan girl in delight. She had never seen an actual ninja before, and from what her siblings had told her, they could literally vanish in a flash. They were also extremely fast, able to outrun a horse, and can throw more knives than all the maids and butlers back in her fortress. And here she was, finally fighting one. _I can't wait to actually see one up close…!_

But no, she cannot get her excitement to take over. She has to ready herself for a fight. So as she fixed her stance again, her eyes started scanning the entire area in preparation for the fight. They were fighting in a flat room, pillars on the walls, with the stairs being behind her and where the observers were standing on. In the middle of the room was a thick, large pillar, almost as if it was the only decoration that was available. Or maybe it was made to hold the entire castle up…?

 _Wait…there's a strange energy radiating here…_ She stared at the pillar again.

"Milady?" Felicia looked at her. "Is something wrong?"

"No…just planning out what to do…hold on, I'm going to do something right now."

She immediately walked forward toward the pillar and instantly felt the surge of energy running through her veins. It had to be a Dragon Vein, she was sure of it. So all she had to do is activate this vein and Father would know that she had the capacity to use the same ancient power as her other siblings…the power that can turn back a common army like they were blowing in the wind. But how would one activate it…?

 **/= =/**

" _Look at me, Elizabeth! I can finally do it!"_

" _Wow, Elise! You're finally riding a horse without falling off!"_

 _She watched as Elise continued to trot on her horse down the garden pathway. They had been practicing horse riding every time that she would come over to visit. From what she had heard from her servants, all of the Royal Family has the ability to ride on a horse, 'for nobility purposes' or whatever they told her about. Given that she didn't have much to do in the fortress, Elizabeth had all the time in the world to learn how to ride a horse, and had done so with such ease. But she really shouldn't tell Elise this, after all her struggles…_

" _Heehee, that means that I'm getting so close into finally helping out everyone else!" Elise smiles, riding to her side. "Now our enemies wouldn't be able to catch up with me!"_

" _Heh…Elise the Quick! That has a nice ring to it!" Elizabeth laughed. "I mean, they run everywhere, don't they?"_

" _Yeah, that's what brother said." Elise laughed back. "So we have the advantage then!"_

 _A war with a kingdom that she has only heard through her servants' whispers…if it hadn't been for Elise being such a blabbermouth, she never would have even realized it. It must have been why her father had kept her hidden away here. It must be for her own protection, for a child who has been brought with no memory beforehand would surely be abused and destroyed by the enemy that hates them with every fiber of their being…_

" _Aiiieeeee!"_

 _Both of them turned their heads to see that the new maid Felicia had fallen to the ground again, this time covered with cuts and bruises that came from the broken pieces of glass and plates that she were carrying. All of the servants immediately turned to her as she sat up, looking at the cuts on her knee. A shard was actually sticking out of her leg. She pulled it out with no hesitation, though she winced by the pain. Elizabeth turned to go to her when she saw Elise rush toward her on her horse._

" _Are you all right?" She asked._

" _I-I'm all right, milady…" She answered, looking away._

" _No, you're not! Look at all of your cuts!" Elise smiled. "Don't worry, I happened to have brought this with me!"_

 _Elizabeth looked at her in confusion as she jumped off her horse and grabbed something from her case. It was a silver staff of some sort, holding up a strange white orb on the top of it. A strange energy emitted from it, something she could vaguely catch. It was then that Elise jumped into the air, arm sticking out to the sky. The energy shot out of the orb and floated to Felicia, and instantly her wounds started to close. Both of them stared at her in surprise._

" _T-thank you, milady!" Felicia stood up and bowed, "I-I won't forget this!"_

 _She immediately fled the area in a panic, finally allowing Elizabeth to go and confront Elise on what just happened._

" _That's a Heal Staff, isn't it?" She asked._

" _Yeah, it is!" She answered back, facing her. "Have you ever used one before?"_

" _I've been trying to." Elizabeth rubbed her neck. "I will admit that…well, I've never got one to work. Even after swinging it everywhere."_

" _You're not supposed to be swinging the staff around, sis! You're supposed to let it connect with you so that it knows what it's doing!"_

"… _I have no idea what you meant just then."_

" _It's easy! Look, you put it in your hand and clear your head!" She waved her staff around to no effect. "You know it's working when you feel something in your arms…like something silky or floaty. And then it'll come out of your fingers into the staff!"_

" _That sounds utterly confusing." Elizabeth rubbed the back of her head. "But maybe that's how Leo uses his magic as well…"_

" _Or maybe that's just him studying too much! Seriously, he needs to lighten up a bit!"_

 **/= =/**

 _Something floaty or silky…_

It's a weird thought, but now that she's standing on the weird point, it does feel as if she's stepping on light silk. Elizabeth cleared her mind and tried to focus on the point, and she felt the sensation start to crawl up her body, slowly up her legs until it drifted to her left hand. It felt like it was going to move on its own. She decided to let it go to see what would happen. Magic is just…weird like that. The sensation made her fingertips glow, and her hand somehow launched it to the pillar in front of her. The inside of the pillar fell away, revealing a strange glowing room hidden inside it. It felt as if the entire room was a Dragon Vein as well.

"Oh! T-that's amazing! You blew a hole right into the pillar!" Felicia ran up to it and looked around. "Wait…was that debris?"

"I guess…" Elizabeth rubbed the back of her head. "I mean, it looked so packed in that it looked like a wall…"

"Excellent plan, milady." Gunter rushed into the room. "We can hide in here and ambush our foes."

"Ambush…?" _We're just going to run into this room and wait for them to surround us?_ That didn't sound too promising.

"Yes, ambush." He turned his head to the two before him. "Remember, Elizabeth. These are prisoners of war, and they are out for our blood. Any action can mean life and death, so any advantage is necessary."

"Right, I know that." She nodded solemnly. _They are the enemy…they must be defeated._

Felicia and Elizabeth immediately ran into the room with Gunter, both wondering where their opponents are. They were probably planning out their strategies as well, knowing that none of them had charged forward for a preemptive strike. If anything, due to how they were personally whispering their plans to each other, they probably don't even realize that they moved at all. The Dragon Vein only blew holes into three sides of the pillar/room/thing, so as far as the enemy was concerned, nothing is happening-

Footsteps.

She could barely hear the footsteps coming closer and closer to their location. They were shallow and light, as if it was merely light paper tapping onto the ground. Elizabeth immediately ran to the right side of the room, sword in hand, hiding from behind the wall, signaling Gunter to take care of the other side of the room. She couldn't help but shake in excitement. _Ninjas really are quick and fast! I'm surprised that I could hear this one running around…they probably look sooooooo cool in battle!_

Felicia, not knowing what to do, ran to her master's side of the room, hiding on the other side of the door. She was clutching onto her knife in her hands, ready to defend her master. Elizabeth could see it in her eyes: she was prepared to fight, but this was probably the first time that she was fighting a real battle as well. Gunter had told her that she had promise, and that Elizabeth would always be safe around her talents, but still…no one really trained any of them how to battle light, fast, acrobatic ninjas. Or maybe they did, behind her back. It seems like a lot of things were kept in the dark for her…

A clang of bashing weapons caught her attention, and she turned her head around to see that the enemy had caught up with Gunter, and he was now fighting off against that woman Rinkah and the soldier that was fighting with her. He seemed to be able to handle both of them with incredible ease. A man of such proficiency really does live up to the name of the Greatest Knight of Nohr…

"Lady Elizabeth! Watch out!"

She turned her head and saw that one of the soldiers had taken advantage of her curiousness and went straight for the ambush. Felicia seemed to have landed a couple of daggers into his back, slowing him down and allowing her to quickly counter attack with a good slice of the chest. He shriveled away from the blade and crashed into the wall, knocked out for the count.

"Wow...that was close…" She turned to Felicia. "Thanks, Felicia."

"Of course, Lady Elizabeth!" Felicia turned to the door again. "But…there was supposed to be another one…?"

"Yeah…that ninja, Kaze…" Elizabeth turned to Gunter again, who seemed to be merely teasing the prisoners at this point. "I don't think he's over there…"

"He's probably waiting for us to come out so that he can ambush the both of us. Ninjas are supposed to be the master of surprise attacks, after all." Felicia pulled out a few daggers. "I'll go first, Lady Elizabeth. I know how to counter a few daggers or two."

"Right. I'll follow right after you. Just circle the wall so that he can't come up from behind."

Felicia nodded in agreement before quietly running out and hugging the wall _(not as quiet as that Kaze guy, but hey what can you do)_. Elizabeth followed, and soon they were both looking around for that man while being prepared for an all shuriken war. It didn't help that the entire room seemed to be colored in a weird greenish tint, meaning that the man who literally decided to wear green today could literally blend into the background if he wanted too. _Maybe I could learn how to hide like this if I had the chance-_

Felicia threw one of her daggers, hitting a shuriken that was clearly being aimed at her head. The maid immediately ran in front of her master, and started a whole barrage of dagger counter attacks toward the target. There wasn't even the sound of a blade hitting a target; the air was filled with sounds of metal hitting metal, used shuriken and daggers falling uselessly onto the ground. A few went past Felicia, but none that Elizabeth wasn't able to dodge. Soon, the barrage had stopped, and the two women were waiting for the second that he would come out of the shadows.

" _ **A ninja's shuriken may not cut deep, but it can sap you of your strength."**_ A voice echoed out. _**"Your death need not come all at once."**_

"Then may my daggers make yours come quicker." Felicia kicked up her close combat blade from her heels. "No one may hurt my master!"

" _Wow, Felicia that was actually pretty badass."_ Elizabeth chuckled.

" _Heh heh, Lady Elise told me to try and come up with something cool to say for intimidation purposes."_ She answered in response, face forward and chuckling. _"We've had a couple that we were going to try out when we go on the field, but-"_

There was a movement in front of them, and before their eyes they saw the strange man Kaze spin out into existence with his own close combat dagger in hand. Felicia and Kaze immediately ran forward and started their close combat duel with each other. Elizabeth stayed back, wondering where she could come in to help her retainer in battle, but she couldn't really move. The whole fight looked so epic and grand in scale that soon Felicia was resorting to throwing ICICLE DAGGERS at the ninja. Some of them were even striking him! _Wow, this really is the fighting that Father really seems to love! It's so much cooler than the training I went through…_

Right. She had to find a way to get into this.

Immediately after she thought that, Felicia was knocked onto the ground by one of the ninja's traps. Kaze was about to land another blow when Elizabeth ran forward and knocked the blade out of his hand. He seemed startled by it and jumped backward, pulling some more knives off the ground. He looked up to measure her abilities, and she noticed that his face had frozen a bit. Almost as if he had recognized something.

"Too slow!"

Elizabeth immediately jumped in retaliation and attacked him. He wasn't able to respond and was thrown to the ground, unable to get back up. A grin splattered itself all over her face as she watched her opponent crumble to the ground. She had actually beaten an opponent that wasn't training! She turned her head to brag and saw that Gunter had made quick work with the other prisoners. Her attention turned to Felicia, who was smiling just as much as she was.

"You did it, Lady Elizabeth!" She celebrated.

"I know…!" She wiped the sweat from her brow. "I was able to defeat a Hoshidan soldier…!" _Are they all going to be this hard?_

She turned her head and saw her family smiling in response to her victory. All of them had trained her for so long in the art of fighting just for this moment…to prove to Father that she could, in fact, handle herself in a battlefield. Her gaze found itself settling on Xander, her teacher, and both smiled once they had made eye contact. She could feel his praise coming out of his mouth, the usual _"you've done excellently, Elizabeth."_

"So…this is how it ends…"

Elizabeth turned her head and saw that the ninja had been trying to move onto his feet, wishing to stand to accept death on his feet. The girl Rinkah had a bit more success, able to get a little bit before collapsing onto her knees. Everyone seemed to have done a lot of damage onto the prisoners, if they couldn't even stand up properly. The ninja collapsed back onto his knees, unable to move. _Well, at least they're still alive…maybe they could give us more information about Hoshido-_

"What are you doing, Elizabeth?"

"Huh?" She turned her head to see Garon glaring back at her. "I'm…assessing the damages." _Isn't that what I should be doing?_

"Don't just stand there, idiot girl. "Kill them all!"

… _kill them…?_


	5. The Risk of Naivity

"Kill them, Father…?" She tilted her head. "But they're beaten. They aren't able to fight back!"

"Do you DARE question me?" Garon stomped his feet. "I order you to kill them!"

She turned her head back to the prisoners behind her, unable to stand or even fight back. It was an order by Father to execute them, but something underneath her skin made the order feel wrong. They were soldiers…Hoshidan soldiers…they ran on the concept of honor, just like Nohrian knights. They are to die in the battlefield, when their last action is a swing of the weapon, not lying down helpless in enemy territory by a woman who hasn't even killed before. This order was wrong. Father was wrong.

"…I won't." She turned her attention back to Father. "…I can't."

"I will not argue this point any further."

He raised his hand and instantly fire erupted from his fingertips. Her eyes widened in a panic; he was going to do this himself. The fire instantly erupted forward, killing the prisoners at the left. Everyone instantly flinched from the reaction, and Elizabeth could hear Elise scream in shock and response. She couldn't understand what was going on…Father had just killed those who couldn't defend themselves...why…? _They weren't going to threaten us anymore…_

Elizabeth turned her head and saw that Garon had turned his attention to the prisoners behind her. Fire started to erupt from his fingertips again, and she knew that if that had hit the target they were going to die. Her mind instantly started thinking about those two…the soldiers that had family…the ones who wanted to escape and go home…if she was in their place, she would have wanted to escape and go home…

The flame shot forward toward them, and almost on reflex her blade shot out before her. It started glowing a bright red, and she watched before her eyes as it literally started to split the flame in half, landing in the area around the prisoners. She could hear the gasp from Rinkah behind her, and beside that the whole room fell into a hushed silence, eyes burrowing deep into her psyche until she could feel the panic. It took a few seconds until Elizabeth finally rationalized what had just happened: she had defied a direct order from the King of Nohr. And he did **not** look happy at all.

"You would _dare_ defy me directly, Elizabeth?!"

It's strange…she knew that she had to be scared at this point. Her eyes had scanned over her siblings, all standing there in complete shock, and she knew for a fact that at least they were scared. But she didn't feel scared at all. Was it because she knew what she was doing was right? Was it shock? Maybe she was just in shock of defying her father's orders without even making a conscious decision about it. Reflexes or something.

"Father, please forgive her!" Xander immediately stepped forward from the crowd and stood between the two of them. "She doesn't yet understand out situation in the war…"

She could hear the fear hidden deep within his words, which had taken her aback. This was the first time that she had ever seen Xander this scared before…especially in front of their father. He had always spoken so highly of him, almost in honor and respect. At that moment, she wondered how much of that praise was actual respect.

"…fine." Garon turned to Xander. "You kill them, Xander. And if anyone else gets in your way, kill them as well."

He's ordering him to kill her. She could see the shock in his face, but the eyes that knew that he couldn't defy his orders. Elizabeth looked back at the prisoners behind her, both confused at what was going on, and wondering why a Nohrian out of all people was trying to protect them so directly. That solidified her resolve. They had to live. There were no regrets in what she had done.

" _ **DO IT! KILL THEM ALL!"**_

The order echoed through the hall, scaring everyone into complete silence. Even she started to feel the fear that ran through the blood of her family. Her eyes hovered especially on Camilla, who seemed as if she was on the brink of tears. As Xander started to walk down the stairs, Camilla's eyes widened even more before turning away in sadness. Elise finally allowed herself to cry, scared of Elizabeth's fate. The fear finally sank into her, and she realized just how much this one action had hurt them all. Garon really did run this entire family with an iron fist. Maybe living in the fortress was the best thing that ever happened to her…

"Elizabeth…stand down."

Xander was now facing her, Siegfried held tightly in his grip. His stance is firm and proper, the usual stance that he would take whenever he would train her back at the fortress. But his eyes were tightened up, filled with the fear that he was going to kill his younger sister. Elizabeth was hurting him. Her act of kindness was hurting everyone here…but still…

"If you do not, I will be forced to-"

"I won't let you do this. I won't let you kill helpless prisoners…not like this." She tried to place her serious face on. She was literally staring death right in the eye. "If this…if this is the war that Nohr was fighting, that you were fighting…I'd rather not live in this world."

"Elizabeth-"

 _No. It's okay._ She tried to smile. She wanted to tell him that, but she finally let the fear sink in. The fear that she was going to die. _If it's you…it's okay…_

Xander swung toward her, and she was barely able to dodge. The swing was harsher and faster than any of her training days in the Nohrian Fortress. He really was aiming to kill…anything to fulfill the order of the father that he thought so highly of. Elizabeth turned her eyes to the cape that swung in front of her, and she saw that one of the edges had been cut off. She didn't even feel the blade come that close to her. _So this was the skill of Xander…the true power of Siegfried…_

"Why are you still defending them, Elizabeth?" Xander seemed to be pleading at this point. "You know that the Hoshidans are our sworn enemies!"

"They are our enemies…but the ones before us now are disarmed and unable to move. They cannot harm us even if they wanted to. They are helpless just like any Nohrian villager!" Elizabeth tightened her stance, a sign that she was serious in her goals. No father can overwrite them. "If we show mercy to them…maybe it will make the war end faster, and we can all be at peace…"

Xander didn't know what to do, eyes digging deep into her subsconsiousness for a sign that he could plead her out of this foolish call for mercy. It was the only thing that had caused her to flinch. Elizabeth really didn't know just how much everyone had lived under the fist of this man. And now she had just presented herself to serve underneath this man as well. A king that cannot show mercy will only bring more war and hate among the land. Maybe if Xander had allowed himself to kill her…maybe it would be enough to cause a revolution?

"Please…Elizabeth…my dear, sweet Elizabeth…" Camilla seemed to be choking up. "Please do not fight him…you will not last…"

"This is horrible! Why is Father letting this happen?" Elise turned to Leo. "L-Leo! W-what should we do? We have to stop this!"

"So I have to do something now…?" Leo sighed. "I'll handle this."

A large tree shot out of the ground from underneath the prisoners' feet, and all of them fell to the ground, unmoving. Elizabeth and Xander were both startled by the cause of events, her especially. Leo really was as analytical and smart as he had presented himself as. Without skipping a beat, he proceeded to walk toward Garon with the same walk that he always had.

"Father, I have dispatched the prisoners on behalf of our soft-hearted sister." He reported with a smile. "I only ask that you would be merciful in your punishment-"

"Enough! I will consider the matter later." Garon waved his hand to make it law. "Deal with the bodies as you see fit."

On that note, Garon left the hall and left the family alone to rationalize what had happened. Elizabeth herself had no idea what to feel. She seriously thought that she was going to die today. It was something that she had actually found herself accepting. But now her actions were for nothing…all of that worrying was for nothing…

"Leo! D-did you really execute them?" Her voice actually cracked as if in fear. What was there to be afraid of? "They were helpless? There was no reason to!"

"…that I agree to." Leo smiled, placing a finger on his lips. "Now hush."

"…oh…" She leaned back. "Then you…?"

"That's enough, both of you. The fight is over." Xander walked past them, holding the holy blade of Siegfried in his hand. He stopped and turned to Elizabeth. "Mark my words, Elizabeth. One day, your act of kindness is going to be the death of you."

"I've already accepted that." She responded, trying to hold back her voice. "At least if I die from a selfless act, I will die without any regrets."

His eyes widened a little bit, as if he wasn't expecting such a solid answer from her. She was surprised that she was able to respond with a solid answer, with the adrenaline still running within her veins. After a few seconds of looking, a smile crept upon his face and he sheathed his blade.

"…well said." Xander turned to the few guards that were there. "Guards! I will examine the prisoners' belongings. Bring their remains to my quarters."

"Yes, your Highness!"

Camilla and Elise went to join the three on the floor as the guards had started moving the bodies of the prisoners to Xander's room. When they finally went to Rinkah and Kaze, they were able to carry them without that much trouble. Elizabeth could barely see that Kaze was trying to keep himself as limp as possible, trying to act like the dead body that he was supposed to be. It seemed easy enough for him to pull off. Speaking of which…

"Leo…what did your spell…?"

"It was enough to weaken them enough to stop moving." He responded, holding his tome close. "Technically, I should have been following Father's orders, but Camilla and Elise always make a fuss whenever you get upset."

"Because Elizabeth doesn't deserve to be upset at all." Camilla pouts, petting Elizabeth. "She hadn't lived with Father as long as we have."

"Camilla, I'll be fine. Don't worry about me." _Maybe I'll have to stop worrying first._ "Thank you, Leo…for saving me back there. Heh, I'm sorry about teasing you before."

"…" Leo rubbed the back of his head. "You can repay me by never mentioning it again."

"Duly noted." Elizabeth giggled.

It was then that Elise had jumped into the conversation, showering Leo with praise and happiness that he had saved their sister from execution. Leo seemed rather embarrassed by it, but it was enough to bring a smile on Elizabeth's face. In fact, everyone seemed to be smiling now that Garon was out of the room. _Was this why they would always visit her in the fortress?_

"I doubt that this will be the last time that we have heard of this, though." Camilla looked away, worrying. "Father never forgives one who defies his order."

"Then I'll live with it." Elizabeth smiled. "I chose this, after all."

"Oh, Elizabeth…" She hugged her. "Please don't do anything too rash…"

"I wish I could stay for a while longer, but I have my duties to attend to." Xander kept walking forward. "I have to examine the prisoners."

"Of course…" Elizabeth turned her head. "I'll, uh…I think I'm going to take a walk around the city. I haven't seen a city in my life."

"Do you, uh…want us to come with you?" Felicia asked, stepping forward.

"No, I'll be fine. I'm not going far." She smiled. "Just into the courtyard in the front."

"As you wish, milady." Jakob bowed. "But we will be looking for you if you are not back in a few hours."

"Of course, of course. Don't worry about me~"

 **/=+=/**

She really was prepared to die at that moment. What was strange was that she wasn't scared about that point.

As she wandered around the courtyard, that thought sunk deep into her mind. Was this the war that she was going to walk into? Was all the training that she had gone through enough to protect the kingdom of Nohr from the enemy? Could she even see them as the enemy like her father wanted her to? Judging from how she reacted when she was given Hoshidan enemies, she still isn't able to do that…

"So this is where you were."

She turned her head in confusion and saw Xander walking toward her, a concerned look on his face. Behind him were the figures known as Rinkah and Kaze, hiding from any wandering eye on the off chance that a Nohrian would have noticed them. Her eyes barely skimmed over them before returning eye contact with her eldest brother.

"I'm sorry…did I worry you?" She fully turned to him. "I mean, I guess I did based on what I did earlier, but…"

"I was worried because you were wandering on your own without any of your retainers." He responded. "But that will be a discussion set for later."

His eyes wandered to his two hidden companions, and she nodded in understanding. Again, she found herself making eye contact with the man known as Kaze, and again he had turned his eyes away as if he was deep in thought. It wouldn't be that surprising, given that she had done something that probably went against every instinct he was taught. They were supposed to be enemies, after all.

"You two are free to go." She told the two prisoners. "Try your best to hide yourself from the Nohrian soldiers, because I will not be able to protect you for a second time."

"…hmph. How strange…for a princess of Nohr to spare us." Rinkah rubbed her nose. "We're taking you up on your offer…but know that if we ever meet on the battlefield again, I will not be showing you mercy."

"I would not be expecting you to."

Rinkah snorted out a gasp of air before running deep into the night. Kaze looked at her again before following suit, fleeing until the two were merely shadows into the night. Elizabeth nodded, satisfied with her contribution, until she turned her head and realized that Xander was looking at her with that stern gaze yet again. It looks as if that discussion set for later has come sooner than later.

"…they were unarmed and helpless. I do not kill those who I already defeated." She started saying.

"It was still an order from Father." He responded. "An order from your king."

"…I know. But I chose to disobey it." Elizabeth's eyes looked away, a tinge of regret in them. "I still cannot separate the difference between what my heart believes and what my king orders me to do…what he had told me to do…was dishonorable."

"…it was." Xander nodded. "But you defied it."

"I can just count that for naivety, I guess. As a Nohrian princess that has not seen how the outside world operates." She looked back at her brother. "Someone who can only see the good in people."

"That thought process will get you killed someday." He responded, almost as if it was an automated answer.

"I know…" Elizabeth found herself smiling. "Which is why you'll be there to teach me, right?"

"…I can't be there for you all the time, you know."

"I know…" She turned her head away. "Just naivety again…I mean, you were always there for me when Father wasn't, so I guess I just…always assumed you would always be there."

That was a response that caused him to lower his head, deep in thought. Elizabeth looked away, thinking about what he had told her. Of course he couldn't be there all the time. He was the prince of Nohr, _**the**_ prince of Nohr, the future king of Nohr, the man that will have to take the reins from his father once he was gone. Xander couldn't be babying her for any longer…

"You've always been so brash."

"Huh?"

"Here I thought I trained you to lose that brashness." He turned to her. "No one else in the family seems to have that."

"They were just better trained, I guess." She smiled, knowing that he was trying to calm her down. "Hey…we've been gone for a while. We should go back to the others."

"…yes. Of course."

 **/=+=/**

 **I liiiiiiive! And I might be updating this more! Or not. I dunno. I just kinda enjoy the story that I'm coming up with.**


	6. The Chance of Redemption

**Honestly, I don't remember much about what happened in the beginning part by extreme detail. But I do remember the general gist of it, so hopefully I'm able to follow a general structure about how Fates is supposed to follow. I mean, some details are going to have to be changed, because this time around, Elizabeth has a personality.**

 **/=+=/**

It didn't take long after she got back for everyone to swarm around her. Camilla was the first to hug her _(straight into the bosom, as always)_ , petting the back of her head and mentioning her worry about how she could have been kidnapped. The second was Elise, hugging her waist and telling her just how much she loved her. Elizabeth was always showered with love from her sisters. It was always the first thing they would do whenever they would visit her back at the fortress…

No, she shouldn't think of such things. She was out of the fortress now. She is free.

Leo wasn't one to give her such open affection, but would instead show his love by talking about how he was a bit disappointed in how she acted to their father. It wasn't surprising, given that this was the first time that she had seen her father in a while and the first thing she did was disobey a direct order from him. Meanwhile, Xander would hang back and watch it all alongside her retainers. He wasn't one to act out affection, after all. But she was used to it. They were all used to it.

"But there still is the problem dealing with father…" Leo brought up, cutting through the chatter around her. "He must still be angry because of what Elizabeth did."

"No problem! I'm sure that he'll forgive her if she apologizes!" Elise chirped. "I think he's in the throne room…if we go there now, you can give him an apology and everything will be better!"

"I'm sure Father will do that." Elizabeth responded, holding onto Elise's hands. "We should go there now, before we miss him!"

She smiled as she took her older sister's hand and led her through the castle chambers. Just before vanishing, Elizabeth was able to catch a glance of the other siblings, who were all staring at her with worry plastered all over their faces. She responded with her own worried expression, before plastering on a smile as she was further led inside.

This was not going to end well.

 **/=+=/**

It was one of the many things that she felt separated her from her Nohrian siblings…one that she wished that she had.

During their many visits, they would talk about King Garon a lot. Some of the time, it would be what he was currently doing for Nohr, but most of the time it were nostalgic memories. From how he taught Xander the swordplay that he would later teach her, to how he would compliment Camilla constantly on her wyvern training, they all seemed to have such fond memories of living their childhood under the roof of their father.

Memories that she sorely lacked.

It was one of the few things that she had refused to tell her siblings, the ones that loved and cared for him so deeply. Elizabeth had been calling Garon "father" because everyone else was doing that. But for some reason, he treated her differently from the others. Instead of living in the castle with her family, he had instead sent her away to live in an isolated castle. He never played with her; that was Gunter's job. He never trained her in the art of swordsmanship; that was the duty of Xander. He was never there as "family"…that was what everyone else did.

As she wandered the halls with Elise, she thought back to when she had greeted him in the hall. Even though she knew him as father, was told he was her father, and was the father of her siblings, it was still strange _calling_ him Father. She was only doing it hoping she would get used to it. But if anything, it just made things weirder.

Garon was only her father by blood. But that didn't automatically translate to _thinking_ him as one…

"Here we are!"

Elizabeth looked up and saw that Elise had done her job and had brought her to the door of the throne room. She seemed so cheery standing in front of it, almost as if she didn't recognize the possibility that Garon would just punish her by execution or exile. But maybe that was to be expected. Like her, Elise seems to have been isolated from life as well.

"Don't worry, father will forgive you no problem! All you have to do is apologize and everything will be better!" She smiled, taking in deep breaths. "All right, breathe in…"

She couldn't help but nod at her little sister's words. Naivety be damned, there was just something about how Elise said those words that made her believe them. Maybe Garon would spare her to make Elise happy. Maybe Garon really was the family man that everyone told her he was. Maybe she was worrying for no reason…

" _ **GAH HA HA HA!"**_

The both of them jumped at the voice that came through the door. Instantly, Elizabeth's spine began to tremble, and she wanted nothing more than to turn tail and head back to the Northern Fortress, away from basically everything. The look on Elise's face signified that she wanted to do the same.

" _It looks like he's with someone already…"_ Elise rocked back and forth. _"Maybe we should leave him be…"_

" _Yeah…let's do that…"_

"Who's there?"

Elizabeth immediately jumped. How in the world could he have heard them if they were talking so quietly? Were the walls really so thin that whispers can echo through the halls? Elise turned her head toward her older sister and saw the pure shock written on her face. No doubt that she still has not been used to the raised voice of her father.

"Sorry to bother you, father…" She began. "I'm here with Elizabeth."

"…what do you two want?" He didn't seem to like having them as company. How in the world did her siblings handle this treatment?

"Father, we're here to apologize." Elise turned to Elizabeth. "Right?"

"Yes, I am. I'm sorry for questioning you, Father." Thankfully, it didn't sound too forced out. Elise seemed to have bought her sincerity.

"…you may enter."

Instantly, the doors opened, and the two of them were allowed in the throne room. When they walked in, Elizabeth couldn't help but look around. It couldn't even be considered a _room_ , so much as a dark hallway lit up with candles. All the way on the other end of the hall sat King Garon, leaning bored on his throne. She could help but wonder if he really did hear them from all the way on the other side, or if he had been a little closer to the door and just headed back before they opened the door. Still, this is a king. Maybe one of the many things a future king is taught is how to hear through walls…

Elise led the way, apparently not all that scared of approaching him, something Elizabeth couldn't help but not mind. She let her lead the way, until they were right at the foot of the throne. Her eyes scanned the many intrinsic designs seemingly stemming from the back of the chair, almost as if they were vines sprouting from the throne itself. Leo once said that it was supposed to symbolize how far the reach of the king of Nohr is through the continent, but staring at it face-to-face, it only felt like it was enveloping itself around her…and she couldn't tell if that was a good thing or not.

"Elizabeth…you disobeyed a direct order from me." Garon's voice seemed to echo through the hall. "Ordinarily, you would not be alive."

"…I understand…" She tried to hide the fact that she didn't mind that punishment, because it still felt like a naïve thing to believe.

"No, Father!" Elise spoke up. "Let me explain-"

" _ **SILENCE!"**_

Elise immediately shrank back, her voice and pose finally bending into a subversive bow. Elizabeth couldn't look at her father directly in the eye, looking down on the ground trying to hide the pride that was sparing her enemies. A strange hush fell through the room, as everyone tried to collect their thoughts. A twinge of guilt finally ran through the princess, and she rubbed her chin. Maybe disobeying his order just caused him to go through a bad mood or something? She just happened to get a bad impression of him?

"…Elizabeth…"

"Yes, Father?" Her eyes finally made eye contact with him.

"As you are my child, I will grand you some leeway." He nodded with firm dedication. "But you are not completely forgiven for your transgressions. Instead, I have something in mind for you…a way to rectify your mistakes. A mission."

"A mission?"

"Yes. If you complete this task successfully, I will pardon your crime in full."

"All right." It would be the first mission that she ever had to do. It shouldn't be that hard to pull off. "What is this mission?"

"Listen well, my child. There is an abandoned fortress perched on the Hoshidan border." Garon explained, straightening himself. "I wish to know if the building there remains serviceable. You are to travel to the site and inspect the premises. No battle will be required from you."

"An inspection mission…" Elizabeth folded her arms and rubbed her chin. It shouldn't be that hard to pull off, especially if it's abandoned…

"Do you understand?" His face has now scrunched into an angered frown. "I won't tolerate being disappointed twice…"

"Yes, Father." She unfolded her arms and straightened herself. "It shall be done."

"All right then. Your word has been accepted." He stood from his chair and started to walk past them. "I expect this mission to be a success."

He slowly walked away, leaving the two princesses in the throne room. Once they were alone, Elise and Elizabeth turned and looked at each other, a sort of relief in their eyes. From the looks of things, father didn't plan on executing her on sight. Plus, from the looks of things, the mission should be relatively easy to pull off. The boarder was only three days away. She could plan on the way out…

The door opened again, this time quietly and without much force. They both turned their heads and saw Xander walk through the door, obviously seeing if Garon was around. Upon seeing that it was only them, he pushed the door completely open, and let Camilla and Leo walk in front of him. Camilla led the siblings toward her, obviously wondering what had happened between her and Garon. Immediately, Elizabeth tried to make a relaxed face. Besides, there was nothing much to be worried about.

"I just saw Father leave the throne room and didn't see you two follow him." Camilla folded her arms. "I'm assuming everything went well then?"

"Everything went…surprisingly well, actually." Elizabeth rubbed the back of her head, relaxing her stance. "Well, not entirely well, but…a lot better than what we were dreading. I'm not getting executed for it."

Instantly, she could see the wave of relief course right through the remaining siblings. Camilla was heavily exaggerated, even going so far as to bend her knees a bit when she sighed out her relief. She always did worry about the family, after all. Maybe it was because there was no mother around _(as far as she was concerned)_. Leo was a bit less obvious, but he did place a hand on his head as if his neck needed the support from being too stiff. His expression even looked like it relaxed, his eyebrows pulling away to a more default look. Xander, meanwhile, was the least obvious in his relief, but she could tell he was relieved by the way he closed his eyes and relaxed his shoulders. He always did that whenever he was told to relax around other people.

"So then…" Leo lowered his hand and returned to his default stand. "What did happen, then?"

"I've been assigned an inspection mission instead, to make up for disobeying him before." Elizabeth explained. "It's at an abandoned fortress right on the Hoshidan border. Father wants to know if it could still be operable."

"Right at Hoshido's…?" Xander's lips tightened.

"He said it was abandoned by Hoshido, so he isn't expecting any fighting to occur while I'm there." She quickly added. "All I have to do is go there and come back!"

"Oh, darling…are you sure about this?" Camilla looked straight into her eyes, worry plastered all over her face. "Abandoned or not, he is still asking you to go into Hoshidan territory. They could be waiting for you there."

"I should be fine. My retainers are coming with me, so I won't be alone." Elizabeth nodded, trying to calm Camilla. "Besides, we're not expecting to bump into anyone from Hoshido there. It may be on Hoshidan territory, but it's still right on the boarder. Why would they be there?"

"…you're acting rather casual about this, Elizabeth." It was Leo's turn to speak now. "It isn't like Father to be so forgiving of miscreation…"

She knew that. Hence the fear of actually confronting him before. The sheer intimidation factor of Garon is so strong that even one who just properly met him would be scared to talk to him again. She must've plastered that thought all over her face, because she could see Leo read her face and nod as if he got it.

"That's enough, Leo!" Looks like Elise didn't catch onto that. "Don't be so worried all the time, sheesh! This is her first mission, so you out of all people shouldn't be scaring her!"

And then Elizabeth watched as Elise slapped Leo right at the back of his head. It was so strong that it actually sent him reeling forward. Part of her cringed. Elise must have gotten that habit from her.

 **/=+=/**

" _Hey, sis…Leo's looking up again."_

 _Elizabeth looked up, and saw that Leo was wandering in front of them, his head leaning slightly up toward the ceiling of the fortress. He wasn't even looking outside the window (though there was not much to look at), but instead was staring at the details of the ceiling. He seemed to be lost in thought. At her side, Elise was walking on her own, finally able to do so without anyone helping her._

" _Sis, why do you think big brother does that?"_

" _It's to keep information in his head~" She joked back to her, leaning down to be eye level. "If he kept it straight like we do, it'll leak right out of his ears."_

" _Oh no! Big brother has to keep all his studies, or else the man with the glasses will be mad at him!"_

" _Aw, the man in glasses? Is he teaching you as well?"_

" _He said he will when I get older…" She pouted. "But I don't wanna be taught by him. I wanna be taught by Gunter!"_

" _Haha…I think Gunter would be very happy to hear that."_

 _Her attention turned back to Leo, who had finally stopped walking and was now looking at a specific crack in the wall, leading up to one of the windows. Immediately, he began mumbling under his breath, something that she couldn't hear. Elise, noticing it, stopped as well. They both looked at him, observing as he turned his head back from the crack to the window._

"… _crack in the wall…open…"_

" _Hey, sister…" Elise turned to her. "He's mumbling again."_

" _I can see that~" She leaned back down to her again. "Hey, I want to teach you something. It's how to get his attention if you catch him rambling on about something."_

" _Oh? I wanna see, I wanna see!"_

" _Shhhh…now, watch and learn."_

 _Slowly, she walked up behind Leo, hearing him mumble more about the one crack in the wall. She crept up slowly, a grin all over her face and her hand up in the air, ready for that surprise attack. As she was right behind him, her arm was all the way up in the air-_

" _If the crack gets any bigger, someone would be able to get in…"_

 _Huh?_

" _She doesn't know too much about fighting…what if Hoshido sends an assassin all this way…?"_

 _Her arm lowered a bit in shock. This was the living quarters of the fortress, the floor where her chambers were. This window was one of the closest to that room. Someone could come in and attack her, if they did not bother to go through the windows of her own chambers. Was that why he was going around the…?_

 _ ***SMACK***_

" _Wha-HEY!"_

" _Ha ha!" Elizabeth grinned. "Maybe during your studies, you should learn how to pay attention!"_

" _Ha ha!" Elise clapped. "Big sister Elizabeth! Big sister Elizabeth!"_

" _Ugh…big sister, you should_ _ **not**_ _be teaching this kind of behavior to her! She's going to get the wrong message!"_

" _Well, zoning out is a bad message as well, you know!"_

 _He was about to say something when he sighed in complete defeat. He knew better than to argue with the sister that has the majority voted against him._

 **/=+=/**

"Hey! That was not necessary!"

That statement brought her out of her memories, and she giggled. Leo's face was always so funny whenever she would do something like that. But judging from the looks on everyone's faces, it wasn't helping the mood one bit. Her small giggles died down.

"Well…I suppose I'll just have to come along." Camilla rubbed her chin, accepting. "That way, I know she'll be safe."

"Camilla-"

"I'm afraid that's not possible."

A voice was echoing from the side of the throne, catching everyone off guard. Everyone turned their heads and saw a man walking toward them, a man that caused everyone to quietly shut their mouths. Whoever this man was, he must be very important to King Garon. Elizabeth's eyes turned away from her siblings and turned toward the one addressing them.

He had the palest skin that she had ever seen in her life _(more pale than even Leo?),_ even down to having thin, purple lips. There was a hint of smugness on the part of the face that she could see, as the other side was covered by a thick, golden mask. He bore a sorcerer robe that seemed to show more of his thin frame than cover it, and his limbs were covered with gold. In fact, he probably bore more gold armaments than Xander himself. _Someone at a higher ranking than the high prince himself…?_

"Iago?" Camilla finally broke the silence. "Why ever not?"

Iago…yeah, he looked like an Iago. Saying it out loud was probably not the best idea at the moment.

"Let me explain, Lady Camilla." The man called Iago answered, now very formal in his tone of voice. "King Garon has given this job as a…test of sorts…for Lady Elizabeth. To prove her loyalty to the crown."

" _Loyalty…"_ Leo looked away for a second. All of this testing of loyalty and faith for just naivety?

"As his top advisor, King Garon has entrusted me with coordinating this mission." Iago turned his attention directly to her. "He wishes to know if she does indeed have the capability to be a true princess of Nohr. After all, she IS part of the royal lineage." He turned back to the others. "Therefore, your assistance would simply muddy the results…and prove her unworthiness to be outside her fortress."

 _ **THAT**_ was a trigger point for everyone. Almost instinctively, Elizabeth noticed everyone shutting their mouths and looking down, unwillingly accepting the results. Still, a job as simple as this should definitely be okay. It's only a recon mission…there wouldn't be any fighting on a recon mission…not here…

"I understand, Iago." Elizabeth broke the silence, turning her head to her now worrying older sister. "Camilla, I can do this by myself. Surely you know how much I have to prove to father."

"No…you will not be by yourself."

That voice always sent chills down her spine. But it was a voice that seemed to be comforting to the others. She turned her head and saw the king himself walk through the shadows, facing her in particular. The tone was…different, from before. Actually warm and comforting…it almost reminded her of Xander.

"Rest assured, I do not intend for you to be sent out there completely defenseless." Garon turned his head to the side. "I will grant you a guard to watch over and protect you."

Another man walked in from the shadows behind him, looking very different from the others. This one looked more like he was wearing a fur skin for a coat, with armor only protecting his neck, shoulders, and parts of his legs. He was bald, muscular, and brimming with confidence. A lot more than everyone else in this room. His gaze kept to Elizabeth, and Elizabeth alone.

"…Milady." His voice was deep, but controlled.

"…sir." She greeted back. He felt different from the other soldiers.

"This man is Hans." Garon told her. "He is one of our veteran warriors, skilled with an axe and given the task of being you protector. He will ensure that no trouble befalls you during this mission."

"…thank you, father."

"You do not need to thank me. I am only giving you the opportunity to prove yourself. That proof will not be worth it if my daughter were to die in vain."

 _Die?_

It gave her a bad vibe, so her attention turned toward the man named Hans, who was now being briefed of the mission by Iago. Whoever this man was, it was still giving her some bad vibes. He looked nothing like a typical Nohrian soldier, covered in black and gold armor. He looked more like a bandit, those bad guys in her fairy tales where they would sweep through the city robbing everyone of their belongings before a brave hero would come out and save them. Actually…he looked like he would be the leader of said bandits…

"… _Elizabeth."_ Xander was right behind her. Pure brother instinct at best.

"… _Xander…?"_ She tried to be quiet so that no one would hear them.

" _I would be wary of that man if I were you…"_

" _And why would that be?"_

" _That man is a criminal. Known for murdering an entire village during one of his raids."_ Xander looked down at her, brow slightly furrowed. _"I arrested him myself when we crossed paths."_

Yes, this was exactly the information she needed to know right now: the man Garon entrusted to be her guardian during this trip is a convicted murderer. This was just supposed to be a simple recon mission of going to some random boarder fortress. Why in the world did Garon decide to send with her a _**murderer**_ , of all things?

"… _maybe he was rehabilitated while in prison…"_ She answered back, trying to be optimistic about it.

" _That is what father claims…but I myself am not sure of that."_

Yes, indeed. You are not helping, Xander. This is just a simple recon mission. This is just a simple recon mission. No need to make the panic worse.

" _Though I believe that Father chose him because of his skills as a soldier."_ Xander kept whispering. _"I hope my suspicions are wrong…because if they are, then you are in capable hands."_

"… _and…if you're right?"_

"Princess Elizabeth."

Xander and Elizabeth turned their heads toward King Garon, who was now looking at her with that stern look on his face. It's time for them to go. It's time for their conversation to end. She turned back to her family, worried looks all over their faces, before turning back to Hans with a steady smile.

"I will prepare for departure. Hans, please meet me at the entrance of the castle. We will leave from there."

"Of course, milady."

She immediately turned to leave the throne room, walking with a quick pace. There shouldn't be the need for that many supplies. It's only a one day trip, back and forth, between the capital city and the boarder. She knew of that when she was looking up her maps back at her fortress. All she needed was to pack up two days worth of food, pack it onto her horse, and-

She found herself standing in place, looking around the hallways. She was distracting herself. It was obvious. This entire mission felt wrong. It was only going to be a recon mission going from one abandoned fortress to another. If that was true, she could just easily bring her retainers along. They all have formidable fighting prowess. Why in the world would Garon send a criminal, reformed or not?

Was she to be executed by the boarder?

"Lady Elizabeth, you seem to be hesitating."

It snapped her back to reality, and she turned her head to see Iago standing there, a semi smug look on his face. Yeah, it was no surprise: Iago is bad news as well. This entire court felt like it was out to get her. But maybe…maybe it was because of what she did back there…with the prisoners of Hoshido. Maybe they're just mocking her for being weak. Strength was a function of Nohr.

"I am merely lost, Iago." She asserted herself. "I was planning on packing food for the trip and I do not know where the kitchens are."

"Rest assured that all commodities have been packed for you during your briefing, Lady Elizabeth. I suggest you make haste to make sure your mission is complete."

"…yes, Iago."

She turned back around and headed toward the castle entrance, feeling his eyes bore into her as she kept walking. Out of all the people she could meet with in the court of Nohr, she had to deal with the worst of the bunch, didn't see? The smug advisor, and the criminal who may or may not be turning a new leaf. This whole thing felt like a trap.

And yet, it was just a recon mission.

Nothing bad should be happening.


	7. The Bottomless Border

The ride was almost immediate. The moment she had come out of the entrance, Hans and her retainers were already waiting. Hans looked the most restless of the bunch, but Gunter and Jakob stood poised in their stances, ready to aid their mistress in time of need. When she walked to them, Felicia was the first to greet her, and soon they were starting their trek toward the border. Gunter had claimed that he had known the shortest way there, so he was the one in front.

"A border fortress…" Felicia looked at everyone there. "We're just going to…walk in there?"

"The fortress has been long abandoned, even before I was ever put in charge of Lady Elizabeth." Gunter responded, turning back to them. "All King Garon wishes to know is if it is still viable for us to use in case the need comes for it."

"Wait, the fortress has been empty for _that_ long?" Jakob shook his head. "Old man, if the fortress has been left to dust before Lady Elizabeth has been in our lives, then it would be too old or anyone to use. I would not be surprised if we go there and see a pile of dust where this building is supposed to be!"

"Building or not, any information will be crucial to King Garon." Hans interjected. "We have to go and report anything that we see there, even if it's just a dust cloud."

"For a building that old, I don't see why King Garon would find any need for something that could collapse with a simple push of a beam." Jakob tilted his head up in a scoff. "I don't see why Lady Elizabeth would bother to check on what a complete wreck this building is going to be."

"Look, servant." Hans looked at him with a glare. "King Garon gave this mission to your liege for the strict purpose of writing a wrong she has committed. While you serve a mere princess, your true loyalty is to the crown of Nohr."

"G-guys…" Felicia tried to interject. "We shouldn't be arguing at a time like this…"

"My loyalty is to my liege. Whoever my liege is loyal to, I will be as well." Jakob straightened himself. "But know that my loyalty is to her and her alone."

"And her loyalty is to Nohr…which means that her loyalty is to the king."

"Guys, please do not argue at a time like this…" Elizabeth was finally able to interject. "We are doing this mission, no ifs, ands, or buts. If there will be nothing but dust, then dust we will find."

Jakob and Hans grumbled, but dropped the conversation, finally allowing them to travel in peace. Her gaze turned toward Felicia, who had quickly calmed down now that the arguing had stopped. As the ride went on, she couldn't help but notice that Felicia's horse was starting to trot closer to her. Soon, they were right next to each other.

" _Lady Elizabeth…is the rumor true? That Hans was a criminal that Lord Xander arrested?"_

" _That is what he told me…"_ She turned to Felicia. _"He said to watch out for him, in case he tried anything."_

" _But why would a criminal be travelling with a member of the Nohrian family?"_ Felicia asked, more confused than before.

" _Father said that he was reformed, and now he is loyal to the crown. So he trusts him enough to leave him with one of his children."_ Elizabeth turned back to him, who was riding next to Gunter to watch for anyone who might cross with them.

"… _he isn't going to try and kill you, milady?"_

"… _I really hope he won't."_

Silence filled the air. She made it awkward again. But then again, this whole situation was awkward to begin with.

 **/=+=/**

No matter how much they told her back at the fortress, no matter how much she could see through the windows of home, it never seemed to truly register to her just how desolate and empty Nohr was until she was travelling though the landscape herself.

The land was rocky and bare, with only a few trees littering the landscape. The eternal night sky made the ground itself look purple and sickly, even though it was actually brown and surprisingly fertile for ground that never saw the sun _(she had to bring it inside just to check)_. Mountains were literally everywhere, and every now and again she would see the lights of what looked like a Nohrian town. She would always ask to stop by and restock, but every time she brought it up, Hans would immediately shut it down. He wanted this mission over and done with, he claimed, Garon's orders. Two words that would shut up any argument, wanted or not.

Her mind wandered to one of her books, one that she would read whenever she wanted to wander out into the world, past her fortress's walls. It described Nohr as a 'land covered in darkness', a realm where the sun never seemed to shine. It was this mysterious trait that the founders of the land decided to call this the land of Nohr…the eternal kingdom of night.

But on the other side bore the land of Hoshido. Hoshido, the book had claimed, was the entire opposite of Nohr. The sun hovered over the land during the 'daytime', shining the entire land in colors that were brighter than anything that Nohr could ever provide its people. It bore exotic flowers, precious fruits, and warm weathers, things that she had never even seen or heard of before. Perhaps at this border, she would finally see something akin to-

"We're nearing the border, milady."

Elizabeth snapped out of her trance, as she noticed a faint bright line over the horizon, covered only by the mountains that were the immediate separation between them and their current destination. Her eyes widened before she turned her eyes away. Looking at that bright light hurt her eyes just a little bit…what was that?

"Heh, don't be staring directly at the sun, Lady Elizabeth." Hans chuckled, moving forward of her. "You get blind if you stare for too long."

"…the sun?"

"Yes, milady." Gunter smiled back at her. "That is the sun."

"…then…" The border fortress they were going to would have to be on Hoshido's side then. That would mean…

"Don't get your hopes up. This fortress might be bordering the enemy territory, but it's still not directly in Hoshido. Not only that, we still have a few hours to travel. It'll be nightfall by the time we get to see this fortress." Hans' horse moved forward. "You ain't going to be seeing any more of that sun than what we're seeing now."

"…I see." If it hurt to look directly at, then maybe it was for the best.

The retainers all looked at each other, and she could tell that they were thinking the exact same thing, though none had the heart to tell her this. She shook her head and continued to move forward, pushing the thought from her mind. At least she could tell the others that she was finally able to see the sun for the first time. She giggled to herself, feeling a bit lighter than before. Maybe they have their own stories about the small glimpses they would have seen of Hoshido-

"…huh?"

It took a while, but she realized that she was no longer sitting on her horse. Instead, she was standing at the edge of a canyon, facing a large, dilapidated building. The architecture was something that she had never seen before, more wooden than stone, with curls on the edges of the rooftop. This was not a Nohrian building. Perhaps this was the Hoshidan fortress that King Garon was talking about? But Hans said that it was going to be a while before they would get there-

There was a sharp pain in her shoulder, and she turned her head to see that a dagger had dug itself there. _An attack?!_

She turned her head around, trying to find the source of the dagger, and saw that a few men were emerging from the shadows, dressed in dark robes and covering their faces. She knew these uniforms. They were Hoshidan soldiers…but one of them stood out to her. He wasn't wearing their uniform, but instead had a mask covering half his face, and wearing what looked to be lighter clothing. The daggers at his side signified to her that he was the source of the one now in her arm.

It was just as she feared. It was just as everyone feared. Hoshidans were here after all. Almost as if to mirror it, lighting started to fall from the sky.

"So you're the leader of these troops." The masked man scoffed. It was a lot deeper than she thought it would be. "What a disgrace of Nohr, sending children to die for the king."

"…who are you?" She tried to pull out her sword, but her arm was too pained to hold it properly. _Where were everyone else?_

"If you truly wish to know, my name is Saizo." The masked man pulled out another dagger. "On behalf of Hoshido, I have come to claim your life."

Before she could truly react, he had disappeared in front of her. Her eyes darted back and forth, trying desperately to find him, only hearing what could be footsteps of him running around her. This man was fast, faster than even her own retainers! Were the rumors about the people of Hoshido true, then?

Well, that dagger in her side seemed so.

She collapsed onto her knees, feeling weaker than before. _Was this a paralyzing agent?_

Her eyes turned and saw him looming before her, the shadows of Nohr painting him almost like a monster of the night. The ones that she feared would always be under the bed when she was a small child. How odd to think of home when she's so far away from it. Perhaps her mind couldn't comprehend what is going on right now…

As he pulled out yet another knife, another bolt of lightning shot from the sky…

"Lady Elizabeth?"

 **~/~==~/~**

She blinked in confusion. There was no longer any Hoshidan soldiers standing before her. She was no longer standing at the feet of the man that was going to claim her life. She was on the back of her horse, walking forward to…somewhere. Elizabeth rubbed her forehead, trying to gather her thoughts back together. The person who had addressed her was…

"I'm fine, Felicia. I was just…lost in thoughts."

She turned her head and saw that it was indeed Felicia, looking at her with a worried look on her face. After a few minutes of eye contact, she nodded and returned to watching over the trail, leaving Elizabeth to continue gathering her thoughts. Yes, that's right. She was travelling with her retainers and her guardian Hans toward the fortress that borders Nohr and Hoshido over the Bottomless Canyon, with the goal of seeing if it could still be used for Nohrian usage. _So what did she just see?_

"Lady Elizabeth. We have arrived."

 **/=+=/**

"Wow…is this the…?"

She had heard about the Bottomless Canyon from the gossiping maids, but there was no way they could have prepared her for this. There was a huge divide between the side they were on and the side that they were trying to reach, separated by a canyon that stretched so far that she could not see the bottom of it. With this coupled with the mountains that they had just hiked over, it felt as if this place was an area isolated all on their very own.

"This is the natural divide, Lady Elizabeth, separating Nohr and Hoshido from each other." Gunter explained. "This is the only place where their land borders naturally touch."

"So close and yet so far…separated only by these…really, _really_ flimsy bridges." Elizabeth's eyes went from the bridges to the cavern below. "So…this isn't  actually bottomless, is it?"

"Well, those who fall into this chasm never return to the land of the living. Perhaps you would like to know why that is, Lady Elizabeth?"

Well, that explains that.

"Still…despite being the only land touching our kingdoms, no one wishes to cross over through this place…and I am not surprised by their lack of peace here." Gunter looked around, a grimace on his face. "I truly despise this place. Something about the land around here just isn't right. The sky here is darker than Nohr itself, and lighting always strikes those who try to fly across the boundary."

Just like that, lightning struck above them, causing her and Felicia to flinch. Her eyes wandered around the canyon, seeing as more lighting continued to strike the land. There were barely any trees here, even less than when she was travelling through Nohr. She never considered that there would be a place deader than…well, _dead._

"Well, if this cavern truly is such a dangerous place…" Jakob folded his arms. "Couldn't we just go _around_ it instead?"

"Well, normally, we would go around this cavern if we were to enter Hoshido…" Gunter pointed forward. "But that is the fort that King Garon wants surveyed."

Elizabeth turned her head and saw the place that she was to survey, hidden only by the darkness of the caverns. She couldn't make out the details, but something about seeing that place was sending shivers down her spine, even more so than the never ending lightning strikes.

"Well…if I can see the fortress from here, then maybe it's close enough to walk to…" She answered, trying to sound optimistic. "Let's just go there and do what father wants us to do…"

"Um…Lady Elizabeth?" Felicia walked up to her. "Should we bring the horses along? Or will we walk there?"

Her eyes turned to the horses, holding all of the commodities that they had packed on this long journey. Then they turned to the bridges, that looked like they were there for thousands of years, to the point of having holes on most of their boards. As she stepped on one of the boards, she could hear it creaking loudly from the weight.

"…let's just…go on foot."

"Are you sure, Lady Elizabeth?" Jakob asked, walking to her side.

"Uh…yeah, I'm sure. And hey! It's something new and exciting to do!" Elizabeth grinned, squashing as much chills down her spine as possible. "We've just been in our own fortress for so long that we need to get a little risky for once!"

" _It was risk like that which got us here in the first place…"_ Jakob muttered.

"Ha! That certainly puts things into perspective, milady." Gunter walked forward, getting off his horse but refusing to leave him. "All right, enough talk. We are here for a reason, so let us go and do so."

It was then that the chills started to reenter her system, but it wasn't for the trustworthiness of the bridges that looked like they could collapse at any minute. What if Hoshidan soldiers really were here? That random thought that crossed her mind made her think so. Still, it was only a thought. Perhaps it was nothing to worry about…she thought to herself, as she felt her hand grip tightly on Ganglari.

"Lady Elizabeth, don't be so tense." Jakob pulled out his daggers. "If there is a threat here, then I will defend you myself."

"…thank you, Jakob." It wasn't helping, but at least someone else here was just as suspicious as she was.

The trek to the first mini-island wasn't as bad as she thought it was going to be. The bridge actually held the weight of Gunter's horse _(though the bridge really wanted to make her think that it couldn't)_. Once they stopped there, they started to look around the area. So far, so good. No random Hoshidans about to pop out and jump them while they were vulnerable-

Wait, why was she so worried? Was it because of that random thought?

She slapped herself on the cheek lightly as more thunder shot above them. _Come on, Elizabeth. You can do better than that_. It was just a random thought crossing her mind. She was just being phobic because she was told by her father to prove her loyalty by going to some random fortress hovering over a bottomless canyon supported by some random reformed criminal that looked like he was craving for some blood. Yeah, that was it. Nothing to be worried about.

"Hold! Do not advance any farther, soldiers of Nohr!"

There is a lot of things to be worried about.

She tensed as she turned her attention to what was in front of her: three Hoshidan soldiers standing on the bridge, facing their blades at them. They clearly didn't want any of them to cross. She felt herself instinctively going for her sword, but she held back on drawing it. The minute it was pulled out, a fight was going to be inevitable. And she already promised the others that she was going to not start a fight.

" _This fortress wasn't abandoned…? Why the devil are Hoshidans here?"_ Even Gunter didn't seem to believe it.

"Nohrian scum." She heard someone else mutter. "You know that crossing this bridge is a violation of our border treaty!"

"… _border treaty?"_ Elizabeth straightened herself. King Garon would have definitely known about this border treaty. Was she being set up?

"Turn back at once, or we will be forced to retaliate!"

That would most definitely be a bad thing. Every chill was going down Elizabeth's spine at this point. Everything that could have gone wrong has gone wrong. Extremely, extremely wrong. Well, not everything had gone wrong. All they had to do is turn around, go back to King Garon, and explain to him that the Hoshidans have taken over the fortress. He never said anything about taking over the fortress; he only wanted to know its status.

"…well then." Jakob turned to her, the same look of worry on his face. "What should we do, Lady Elizabeth?"

"We go back and report to Father that Hoshidans have taken over the fortress." She turned to everyone else. "We were only told to survey the area, and we clearly have done that already. So we can just leave."

"That would be a wise decision." Gunter began to turn around. "Let us go."

Everyone started to turn around, heading back home after their finished job. But then, that chill was going up Elizabeth's spine again. Instinct was going off the charts. Something was wrong. She turned her head around and noticed that Hans wasn't following them, instead staring right back at the Hoshidans blocking the bridge. His fingers were starting to twitch.

"Hans, let's go. We were not sent to start a fight with Hoshido!" Elizabeth stood her ground, her voice causing the others to turn around as well. "Come back here and let us return to Nohr!"

He wasn't moving. His fingers were twitching even more. If she didn't something quick, the whole situation could fall apart. She walked forward and stood her ground, staring straight at his back.

"Hans! That is an order!" She repeated herself. "Do not engage these troops! Return with us to Nohr! I am the commander of this mission as granted by King Garon himself, and you shall do what I say!"

"You should be listening to her, Nohrian soldier!" One of the Hoshidans yelled to him. "Do you wish to start a fight with the entire Hoshidan army?!"

"…what are weaklings doing…trying to boss me around?"

"Huh?"

Hans ran forward, tackling the entire Hoshidan troop on the bridge with his axe. Her eyes widened as their blood started to drip past the bridge into the endless cavern below them. He then darted his head to them, and she could see the bloodlust going right through his face. There was no way this man was a reformed criminal. Not with a mindset as structured as this. If only Xander told her how to handle him better…

"Dogs of Hoshido! Hear me! For we of the Nohrian army will come and claim what is rightfully ours!"

Before anyone could do anything, Hans disappeared into the army, leaving the four them dumbfounded on what had just happened. Just as they were about to regroup and figure out a plan, arrows and daggers started to be launched toward them. It was coming from the army, and they had bloodlust all over their eyes as well.

"Push back the Nohrians! Do not leave a single one of them alive!"

Elizabeth's hand returned to the weapon at her side, a state of numbness filling up the thoughts that used to be filled with fear. King Garon just wanted them to find out the state of this fortress. He wanted to know if there were people here or not. He never asked for engagement with the enemy. He never demanded Hoshidan blood. But…the fact that she, a princess with minimal training, was sent with minimal guards, one of them being this bloodthirsty criminal who just wanted to start a fight, to a fortress whose location would clearly violate a treaty that he must have already known about…

Had she been set up?

"Lady Elizabeth! Get behind me!"

She snapped out of it and hid behind Gunter, who was swatting away the arrows that were flying toward them. Her eyes reached forward and started to survey the area. There were eleven people here, all aiming toward them. There had to be a way to stop all of them without bloodshed…

"Gunter, is that fortress their headquarters?" She asked. "Would they stop if we were to take it over?"

"I believe that it would be the wisest choice in this scenario." He turned back to her. "If we cut them from their source, they'll be forced to surrender."

"All right…and after that, we'll have to deal with Hans."

"Would you rather I deal with Hans, milady?"

"Uh…" She didn't even think about what she would say to him. Yelling would not be working since she was nearly half his height. "I'll…let you handle him."

"All right then. Jakob! Felicia! To me!"

The other two, successful at countering their opponents, quickly ran to their side, hiding behind Gunter as he started to charge for the fortress. Elizabeth quickly followed suit, causing the both of them to run after them. She didn't want to kill these men, but these men were clearly out to get her. They had to, since she was the cause of their comrades' deaths. But she could not bring herself to do it. Every slice she took toward them, she did it to cripple them, leaving them bloodied on the floor upon where they stood. Any other death would just escalate the tensions between the kingdoms.

"The fortress is up ahead, milady!" Gunter stopped past the bridge, fending off those who were there. "Go, seize it!"

"Right!"

The three of them ran ahead, trying their best to be hidden from the view of the soldiers as Gunter was distracting them. As they were passing by, Elizabeth could see that Hans was clearly having a good time, hacking and slashing everyone that was getting in his way. None of the other soldiers were even making a dent on him. Their frightened screams bore deep into her mind. The war that was being fought outside her lonely fortress…

"Elizabeth, look out!"

A blade barely grazed her, and she turned her head to see that two cloak-covered men had jumped from the shadows to surprise them. Not surprisingly, Felicia and Jakob were able to deflect the blows. With a quick nod of the head, Elizabeth slipped through them and started to make a break for the fortress.

This whole plan was going to hell. It could not get any worse than this.

 **/=+=/**

The fortress was completely abandoned by the time she got there to take it over. However, expecting a surprise attack, she pulled out her sword and slowly walked toward the front of the building. Her eyes grazed around the area as she started her trek. This was nothing like the buildings that she had known back home. It was…different.

Only the bottom of the fortress was made with stone, but it wasn't smooth stone like back in Nohr. Instead, it looked more like a bunch of rocks were stacked on top of each other and pasted together with whatever kept the wall together. Upon further glance, the upper walls looked more like they were made out of wood. Was it even possible to make buildings out of wood? The only things that she ever saw that were made out of wood were small trinkets that she had been gifted.

 _Wait…she saw this before…_

Her eyes looked toward the roof. It wasn't straight like the roofs back in Nohr. Instead, they were grooved with curled edges, formed like it was a lid on top of a bowl. It actually made the building look nicer than what she had seen back in-

In that random thought of hers.

She instinctively pulled out her sword and tensed…and then her conscious crept back in. Was she really going to throw this much worry about a stray fear going through her mind, when there is a fight happening just a few feet away from her? Was the fear getting to her? No, she has to get herself together. She has nothing to worry about-

 _ ***CLANG!***_

A force pushed onto her blade, and she saw with a shock as a blade landed on the ground next to her. It was the dagger that had burrowed itself inside of her shoulder back in her…thought…?

Her eyes darted to the trees, and saw as Hoshidan soldiers charged out of the shadows, readying their blades against her. There are only two of them…but there was a person coming through between them. A man with short, red hair, tight but flexible clothes fitting onto his frame, and the mask…the strange mask that covered over his face… _no, it couldn't be…_

"… _Saizo…?"_

"Huh. So you know my name then? How could a child such as you know of…?" His eye narrowed. It was then that she realized that his other eye was closed, a scar covering the top. "I see…here I thought you were a simple soldier, but you are the commander of this invading army."

"That man acted against my jurisdiction." She replied, straightening herself. He must be the commander of this troop, if he was hanging back like this.

"Hmph. Why should I listen to a Nohrian dog such as yourself? You're probably just as much as a liar as he was." Saizo readied his blade. "On behalf of the king of Hoshido, I sentence you to death."

He charged forward, vanishing into the air. Elizabeth quickly started panicking, and darted her head around. There was nothing but darkness and shadows, with quick glances toward the Hoshidan soldiers who were expecting her to take advantage and charge at them. This was exactly what happened in her daydream, down to the appearance of the building and the man known as Saizo. She quickly clawed it out of memory and tried to recall as much as she could. _Where was he going to strike her next?_

A blade nicked her leg, and she collapsed, barely able to catch herself before going fully down. It looked as if that paralyzing agent was still on those blades, though it didn't completely get into her system.

He reappeared in front of her, this time twirling a blade in his hand. She really didn't remember him doing that in her daydream. But it was following it to the letter, down to him walking toward her with a look of murder written all over his eyes. Thunder rained from above, and she could see the shadows looming over his face. It was a monster painted from a nightmare, emerging straight of the dream onto the human plane.

"This is the punishment for threatening the Hoshidan family."

He started charging forward, ready to slit her throat, just as a lightning storm began. Her eyes shivered with fear, just as another bolt of lightning shot through the sky. However, there was something strange about that particular bolt. It wasn't bright like the other ones. Instead, it was lightning as dark as the sky itself…

"I _**won't**_ allow it!"

She heard horses charging toward their location, catching Saizo's attention. Out of the blue, a horse came in and jumped between the two of them, blade out ready for an attack. Elizabeth's eyes widened as she was able to see the figure's details from the light emerging from the storm. Wavy, blond hair, clad in purple and gold armor, and wielding a blade as black as the night itself…

"… _Xander…?"_

The Hoshidans before her were scrambling now. They were not expecting reinforcements to such a ragtag bunch of Nohrian soldiers, much less the actual Nohrian prince himself. She slowly brought herself to her feet as she watched Xander battle the clad ninja. This was the first time that she had ever seen him fight on a battlefield, without training gear, without supervision, without a chance to tap out. It was a much different version of him that she had never seen before…even colder, even more calculating than before…

"Elizabeth! You're all right! I was so worried about you!"

She turned her head and saw Camilla flying toward her, axe bloody from fighting. Leo and Elise followed suit, weapons at their sides and attention focused solely on their crippled sister. Immediately, Elise raised her staff in the air, and she could feel the paralysis slowly leave her body. She finally felt as if she could calm down and think about just what happened.

" _I knew that something like this would happen…but at least we got here on time."_ Leo mumbled with a look of annoyance on his face. He suppressed it the minute he made eye contact with her. "Your luck never seems to run out, doesn't it sister?"

"You've done enough, my dear~" Camilla smiled. "Now leave the fighting to us, regroup with your retainers on the other side of the bridge, and leave this fight."

"Camilla…are you sure?" Elizabeth looked at everyone. "You're going to be okay? We're not going to start anything worse?"

"You were not here to start a fight, and you are definitely not here to end one." Leo's horse walked forward. "Don't worry. We'll clean up here and follow you shortly after."

"…all right. But you better all come back!"

"We will. Do not worry about us!" Camilla launched herself into the air, the shadows painting her face with grave vengeance. "Who is the one who dares to attack my beloved Elizabeth? I'll have their heads on a platter!"

It was throwing the rest of the army into a loop, and Elizabeth watched in shock as she swooped in from the air and threw herself right into the crowd, launching everything that touched her straight off the ground. Everyone's attention was fixated on them, so she took the opportunity to sneak away and run out there. Just as she was about to leave, she heard a call from one of the soldiers. It seemed as if there were Hoshidan reinforcements on the way.

 _I hope everyone will be all right…_


	8. The Fear in the New One

Come to think of it, she never thought about how ruthless her siblings could be on the battlefield. Considering the strength of the Nohrian army, she can't help but wonder how in the world it never crossed her mind.

These were her siblings. They were always so kind, courteous, and gentle with her. Whenever they would come to her fortress, they would always play with her. They would always talk with her about anything she wanted to talk about at that moment. Even when they would train her, it was light and playful. Camilla always let her win, so the real training came from her two brothers _(Elise never really chose what weapon she wanted to use)_. But even then, there was never really any seriousness to it, other than "yes, it's a lesson, so please learn it".

These were her siblings.

These were some of the few people that she ever had a close connection to, throughout her entire lifetime.

And yet it just occurred to her that maybe she didn't really know them at all.

Maybe she really was naïve and clueless as they said she was.

As she ran through the bridges, cleared out enough for her to run toward the horses, the thoughts were pushed as far to the back of her mind as she could. No one was going to die here today. She could think about and ask about it later. Besides, if she was to fight alongside them in battle, she'll have to get used to seeing more of these sides of them.

 **/=+=/**

Jakob and Felicia were nowhere to be found. But she was able to see the shadows of Gunter and Hans up ahead. She mumbled under breath as she ran toward them. She'll have to deal with Hans and the fact that he completely started this whole mess, but she should be all right as long as Gunter was by her-

They're arguing over something.

She stopped in her place, just a bit too far for them to see her. The thunder was too loud for her to actually hear what they were talking about, but Gunter clearly had an enraged look on his face. Maybe he was just as mad as she was that Hans started an attack on Hoshidans without any direct orders from King Garon himself, and was saying it now because Hans clearly won't take a direct order from her. Gunter always seemed to know what she was thinking.

Wait…why is Hans bringing out his axe?

Elizabeth watched in horror as Hans started slashing towards Gunter, throwing him off his horse, laughing the entire time. He didn't even have time to react to the sudden change of events. Hans was swinging his axe, missing him but digging deeper and deeper into the wood. Then, with a large grin accented by the lighting, he chopped one more block of wood, and Gunter fell with it.

" _G-Gunter…?"_

"Hah! That's one of them down." Hans looked through the hole. "Sorry pops! King Garon's orders. Nothing personal!"

King Garon? Wait…it can't be…

"All right, time to find the rest of the lot. All these Hoshidans are perfect cover for me…and this hole is just so _useful_ for hiding the evidence." Hans was straight up gloating at this time. "Let's see…well, Garon did say he especially wanted the blood of the pretty little princess…"

Oh god, he was talking about _her._

Thousands of thoughts swarmed her mind as he started to approach where she was. Hans just killed Gunter. _Hans just killed Gunter_. On direct orders to kill them. King Garon really wanted them dead. This was an execution, just with a convenient excuse tied on top of it. She had the perfect excuse right now to go forward and fight him right now. Fling his corpse right over the side of the bridge and be done with it. But that power. That ruthlessness. It's nothing like the Hoshidan soldiers. No. She couldn't fight that. She would die immediately if she tried.

She had to get away.

She had to _run._

 **/=+=/**

Hans was on the only bridge that connected to the Nohrian side of the chasm, so she was forced to flee back to the Hoshidan side. The thunder and lightning hid her footsteps and heavy breathing from her sensitive ears, so it should be hidden from Hans as well. It didn't look like he was in any rush to find her, anyway. The fight is still going on.

She bolted straight into the woods before catching her breath, leaning on one of the trees. Hans wouldn't have followed her this deep, not with everyone else there fighting off the Hoshidan soldiers. He'll just take out his aggression on a few enemies and then get yelled at by Camilla or something for starting a fight.

Wait…that's a great plan to work on. Using the woods as a cover, head back to the fortress and reconvene with the others. Make sure she's with at least one of them by the time they connect with Hans, and then when everyone's going back tell them all that Hans threw Gunter into the chasm. Sure, Hans may want to kill her, but there's no way he's going to do it in front of the royal family. Garon didn't have a hit out for them. After all, they weren't the ones that failed him.

She was the one who failed him.

She bit her lip before charging back to the fortress, hoping that they were still there by the time she got there. However, that was not the case. Bolting out of the trees, she saw nothing but an empty field, covered only by the bodies of the dead. Fortunately, none of them seem to be her siblings nor her retainers. They were safe. Which meant that they're probably heading back to the other side of the chasm. She was going to have to get there before they leave her.

Before she took a step further, she felt a sharp blow to her head, and her consciousness quickly bolting afterwards. As she fell to the ground, the last thought she felt was one of regret. The one who hit her must have been Hans. He caught her. It's all over. She was never going to go back home. She was going to die here, alone, flung into a chasm where her family will never see her again.

 _Is this…what our enemies were thinking…when we killed them?_

 **/~+~/**

" _It's time to wake up, young master. You're oversleeping again!"_

 _Her eyes flickered open, seeing Felicia smile and bow to her as she sat up from her bed. She never was one to wake up so early. Turning her head, she saw that the place has been masterfully cleaned (as always), and her dress garb is strung out on the hanger next to the window. Other than that, the room is the same as always. They probably cleaned it up while she was asleep. Wouldn't be the first time that they would do that._

" _Flora and Jakob are preparing the breakfast for you." Felicia informed. "After that, Gunter tells me to meet him for your studies."_

" _Thank you, Felicia. You're excused."_

" _Yes, master."_

 _She quietly waked out of the door, leaving her alone with her thoughts. No one was coming to visit her that day, at least, that was what she had overheard from the conversation between Gunter and Leo yesterday. She has a day alone, to herself, without any of her siblings coming to watch over her progress. No Elise trying to feed her vegetables so that she wouldn't eat them. No Camilla doting on every single step that she walked on. No Leo laughing at all of the mistakes she would make in her studies. No Xander training her in swordsmanship._

 _Come to think of it, she had less days on her own than with her family, huh?_

 _As she dressed, her mind started to come through with questions. Why would they come so often to visit her? Their home would most definitely be a lot bigger than her confined fortress. It's the main castle of Nohr, after all. It would be more suited to fit their wants and needs. What was_ _ **here**_ _…?_

"… _what could I possibly have that they couldn't get back home…?"_

 _She left her room, greeted by two maids, as she started to walk to the dining room. The hallways were quiet, echoing her footsteps as she continued to walk. It was so rare to be this quiet, and yet she hated hearing it. It just kept reminding her of just how isolated she was from the world. No one would let her outside the walls. Not the maids, not her siblings, not her father…the father that she had never met._

 _The father that would get constantly praised by her siblings and yet would never be described by any of them._

 _Strange…_

 _As she descended down the stairs, she heard galloping horse steps coming closer and closer. Confused, she turned her head to the window and saw a small figure charging toward the fortress. It was a man, riding on the horse as if he was running away from something…_

" _Oh!" One of the maids finally realized something. "I think that's prince Xander!"_

"… _Xander…?" Elizabeth turned to her maids. "Tell Flora and Jakob about Xander. I'll go and greet him personally!"_

 _She immediately started running without hearing what they were going to tell her. This was the first time that one of the siblings visited without telling her first. Perhaps there's something wrong? Maybe Nohr is under attack, and Xander was here to warn her? There was such a fierceness in his riding ability, it kept this deep fear in the bottom of her stomach. Hopefully, everyone else is all right…_

 _ **/~+~/**_

 _Gunter was already downstairs by the time Elizabeth arrived at the stables, and was well deep into a conversation with the new arrival. She quickly hid herself from sight as she watched Xander dismount from his horse and pet her as he fixed himself._

" _I wasn't expecting a visit from you, Lord Xander." Gunter tied off his horse. "Then again, seeing the frequency of your visits, I should have at least expected it."_

" _No, I must apologize. I should have at least sent a messenger ahead to announce my arrival." Xander looked at him. "My visit is…sudden, I know."_

" _Is there something wrong happening at the capital?"_

" _No, it's nothing like that…" Xander's eyes wandered for just a second. "It's just…between me and Father."_

"… _I see." Gunter didn't have to say anything else._

 _It was only then that Xander realized that someone else was in the room. His eyes scanned the building and found Elizabeth hiding behind one of the stables. Instantly, the tension and anger in his eyes faded, and a warm smile crossed his face. He left Gunter's side and walked toward her, as she slowly came out of hiding._

" _You didn't have to hide from me, you know. It's just me."_

" _Sorry…I was just wondering why you came here." Elizabeth smiled. "You tend to never come here unannounced."_

" _There's just some tension back at home…and I needed to get away for a while." Xander smiled back. "I hope you don't mind me being around today."_

" _No, it's fine. I was just thinking about how I enjoyed your company~"_

 _The two of them laughed, as they turned and headed over to the dining hall. Hopefully, there was more than enough food for the both of them today._


	9. The Trip up the Mountain

The first thing that came to mind was that she was lying down on a wooden floor. Secondly, was that something was being cooked right next to her. Thirdly, was that the room she was in was dimly lit by the cooking fire in front of her. Fourth...there was someone on the other side of the fire. And she looked very familiar.

"You're awake. That's good. Thought the conk to your head killed you straight away." She looked back at the food. "Sorry about that bump, though. Didn't think it'd be that hard."

Elizabeth sat up, groggy and confused. She had definitely heard that voice before. Recently, too. That voice sounded a lot like…

"…Rinkah?"

"You remember me? Hah. Thought you wouldn't have, given the circumstances of how we first met." She picked at the fire. "Not sure if I should be happy about that or not."

"…you can…think whatever you want about it." Elizabeth looked around the room. "So this must be…"

"A Flame Tribe village, yes. It's about a few hours away from Hoshido's capital city." Rinkah went back to her food. "I've been ordered to hand you over to the Hoshidan authorities."

"…you're going to follow through with that?"

"Of course. I may be from the Flame Tribe, but I am still a Hoshidan."

"…I'm not surprised about that. After what happened at the chasm, they're going to want an answer about that." Elizabeth cuddled her knees together. "Not to mention that we even broke a peace treaty…"

"Yep. You definitely did."

 _Goodness, she's almost like Jakob._ "So I guess I'm going to be executed for this." Either at the axe from Hans or at the hands of the enemy Hoshidans. She just cannot catch a break, could she?

"No, I think you're going to be fine." Rinkah filled a bowl with soup and extended it to her. "Hey, they aren't going to be here for a while, so you want some while you wait?"

"Hm? Oh…thank you…" Elizabeth took the bowl. "You're too kind…what is this, anyway?"

"What, never heard of nikujaga before? We Hoshidans eat it all the time." Rinkah started to eat from her own bowl. "Seeing as how you're Nohrian, I think you're going to like it."

Elizabeth started at her bowl, wondering what she meant by that. There was obviously some type of beef in this, as well as carrots and some type of vegetables she hasn't seen before. Still, if she was eating it from the same pot, it shouldn't be poisoned. She turned back to her bowl and started to eat. The beef was very hearty, and the soup somewhat salty. But other than that, the vegetables were crisp and fresh. Nothing like the ones she would have back at home. Only a few days old and tasting so bland…

"You seem to be enjoying that." Rinkah remarked.

"Yes, I…this is very good!" She turned back to her, eyes sparkling. "I never had vegetables this fresh before!"

"I can see that." Elizabeth noticed that Rinkah's attention seemed to shift on something. "It's so good, it made you a fast learner."

"What do you mean?"

"Hm? You didn't even notice it?" Rinkah grinned. "That makes you even more mysterious."

She had no idea what she was talking about until she looked back down at her bowl. The soup was fine enough, but it was her hands. She hadn't been using the spoon for the soup. Instead, she was using the two sticks that had been next to them. They looked nothing like the fork and knife combo she would use back at home. In fact, she was quite sure that she never used them before. But here she was…using them as if she had been trained all her life.

"Those are called _'chopsticks'_ , by the way." Rinkah cut through the silence. "We Hoshidans use them all the time when we eat. You learn how to do that back in Nohr?"

"…no…no I never did." _But how did she…?_

"Well, whatever the case may be, you better keep eating." Rinkah returned to her bowl. "They'll be sure to show up any minute for you."

"Uh…sure."

For the first time since her deployment, she didn't feel fear. But the anxiousness from the bottom of her stomach still lingered underneath the surface. Something felt strange…horribly wrong. She wanted to believe that the Hoshidans weren't going to do anything to her, like Rinkah told her was going to happen. But at the same time, it's strange that Rinkah would just…assume that, given the gravity of the situation. Maybe that's just how political prisoners work? Or maybe Rinkah is planning on vouching for her?

A knock rang out from the doorway, and she jumped. _They were here to get her. It's finally going to happen._ She was so frozen in place that she didn't notice that Rinkah had moved to greet them at the door. It was only when she heard the casual banter between the greeter and the guest that snapped her out of it. Usually, political prisoners would take massive priority over what was happening that morning around the well. But whoever was going to bring her in clearly wasn't in any rush.

…wait, she knew that voice.

She stood up, finished bowl in hand, and watched as Rinkah led her visitor into her house. It didn't take long for her to recognize the one who fetched for her, the man who she first met in unfavorable conditions, the one who had entranced her just by the way he protected himself during their battle. The very first ninja that she had ever seen in her life.

"It's you…Kaze."

"You're actually here…part of me was worried that you would not be, milady."

Elizabeth was confused. Why in the world was he talking so formally to her? Wasn't she supposed to be a prisoner? Maybe it's a Hoshidan custom or something, treating prisoners with kindness so that they would be more willing to confess to their crimes. It wouldn't match anything that everyone back in Nohr would tell her about how Hoshido would deal with prisoners, but…maybe she's going to be made as a bargaining tool? That's a possibility as well. It's not like the ones in charge would tell Kaze what their plans are. He's just the one picking her up. So his calmness isn't telling her anything…

Rinkah had clearly noticed the nervousness in her eyes, and tilted her head toward Kaze, hoping that he would notice and respond to it. Indeed, he noticed it, for he smiled and quietly knelt at her feet. It immediately caught her off-guard, and her thought process stopped. He was kneeling as if he was addressing royalty. Well, she _was_ royalty…but she was royalty to the enemy nation. There wasn't any need for-

"Michiko-san. I am here to finally return you home."

"…hah?"

 **/=+=/**

Kaze had come with a horse-drawn carriage that fit the three of them, so after fitting everyone inside, the journey had finally begun. Rinkah had stated that it will take a few hours before they finally reached the capital, so Elizabeth decided that she was going to spend these hours staring everywhere else. It's not like there was anything else she could talk to them about.

 _They must be laughing on the inside right now._ She mused. _They were our prisoner back at home, and yet here I am, as_ _ **their**_ _prisoner._

She couldn't help but wonder about everyone else back at home. Her siblings must have gathered away from the boarder, waiting for her to return so that they could go back to the castle. They would have for sure realized that she was missing after waiting for so long. Maybe they would run into Felicia and Jakob, who would be wondering where she was as well. That was when they would realize that something was horribly wrong. Then finally, Hans will show up and tell them that she was kidnapped by the Hoshidans, and that Gunter was killed when he resisted. Would they believe Hans' claim that it was the Hoshidans who killed Gunter? Xander didn't trust Hans at all, that's what he told her. But everyone else might. Hoshidans **are** the enemy, after all.

And what was the deal with _"Michiko-san"?_ Kaze had called her that when he picked her up. Was that a title for Hoshidan prisoners? No, it didn't sound like it. He said it with such sincerity and calmness. Prisoners shouldn't be getting that kind of treatment. At least, that's what Leo had been saying during some of his visits.

" _Prisoners are at the mercy of those who keep them captive. They are at the whims of those who hold them in their cells. The most one could do is keep themselves alive and hope for escape."_

"… _by that meaning, would that make_ _ **me**_ _a prisoner, Leo?"_

Leo could never respond to that question. Maybe that meant that she was right.

On that statement, Kaze said that he wanted to "take her home". Take her home? Does that mean that he is just going to bring her back to the border and return her to Nohr? That can't be it, since judging from the direction of the sun, they're going further and further into Hoshido. That doesn't make any sense. She was a Nohrian princess, born and raised. She wasn't a Hoshidan. There's nothing about her that's remotely Hoshidan.

…unless…

Ever since she was a child, she was kept inside of that fortress, isolated deep in Nohr, hidden away from the world. Only a select few could visit her, and they would do so very frequently. But that rule was always kept in place: she must always stay in the fortress, and must never leave. Meanwhile, her siblings would always wander freely, perhaps facing off against Hoshidan soldiers that try to invade their kingdom or fight back in skirmishes. It was only after so long that King Garon would finally let her out of the castle and face off in this war that everyone would talk about. He would say that it was because she was sickly, but she never was, and he never brought it up again. With such a strange rule imposed on her and her alone…and with what Kaze himself was saying…

"…Kaze? I have a question."

"Hm?" He turned to her. "What's wrong?"

"…is Michiko…my real name?"

"Yes, it is. It's your name, given to you by your mother." He responded. "She has waited for a long time for you to return to her."

She was expecting it, and yet it still took her by surprise. Gunter had always taught her to always look at the surroundings and think analytically, for facts can never lie to her. Leo was the master of this kind of thinking, and she would always try to replicate it whenever they had classes together. But it was the first time that she had sincerely hoped that she was mistaken. That maybe there was something wrong with the information. There was no way that she could be a Hoshidan. She was a Nohrian. It couldn't-

The cart hit a paved road, and it snapped her back into reality. She'll ask whoever they are going to meet if what she's thinking is true.

Her eyes wandered again, and she found herself surrounded by cherry blossom trees. They had been planted along the sides of the road, leading them forward past the hills. Confused, Elizabeth looked over the head of the cart driver, seeing a gigantic mountain looming over them. It was so ginormous that she could not see above the tip, though she was able to see what seemed to be the top of a castle. It was a castle that she had never seen before. _And yet it felt so familiar…_

"That is the Castle Shirasagi. It's where the royal family of Hoshido lives." Rinkah remarked. "The capital city of Umaeda surrounds the base of it."

"The castle is surrounded by the capital city…it's just like Windmire…" Elizabeth looked up even more. "But it's so high above the ground."

"It's so that they can rise toward the heavens and reach the sun…or at least, that's what I've heard." Rinkah points to the sky. "As Hoshido is the land of the sun, they wish to get as close to it as possible."

"I see…" It would make sense. This was the kingdom that had the sun in the sky…unlike that of Nohr.

"Please sit down, Michiko-san." Kaze lifted up his hand. "We're about to go up the mountain and I don't want you to fall."

"Oh, uh…right."

Elizabeth quietly sat down as the cart started the trek up the hill. Everyone fell into silence again, allowing her to feel the nervousness in her chest. She didn't want to be kept as a political prisoner. But at the same time, she didn't want to confirm her status as a Hoshidan. It would make her family her enemy. They didn't like Hoshidans at all. So if she was in fact a Hoshidan, and they find out about it…

The sound of running water snapped her out of it, and she turned her head to see gigantic waterfalls raining from the tips of the mountain. It was as if the mountain itself was releasing the water into the rivers below. Greenery sprinkled every single crevice and rock, hiding the dirt that was underneath them. Flowers that she had never seen before grew on the mountain just opposite of her current location. She wished she could get a closer look at them but alas, she was not a flier. She didn't have a wyvern that could fly her there.

It was then that she heard the neighing of the horse, and she saw that the horses pulling the cart up seemed to be communicating with something. But it was only at that time that she noticed that straps were put on differently. It wasn't like how one would strap a horse in Nohr. It was surrounding a strange plumage on its back…were those wings…?

More neighing caught her attention, and she saw what looked like flying horses soar through the sky in formation. There were five of them in all, and from the looks of the weapons in hand, they were merely training on how to fly. She was awestruck at the gracefulness they seemed to emit. They were nothing like the wyverns back at home, which flew with power and intimidation. It actually looked as if she could fly one without getting motion sickness. Like the time Camilla tried to get her to fly on her wyvern. That didn't last all that well.

"Are the hikoba that fascinating to you, princess of Nohr?" Rinkah teased. "They're just like the horses back in your place."

"Yeah, but…they _fly."_ Elizabeth pointed at them. "Nohrian horses can't fly."

"But you have wyverns, don't you? They can fly."

"But not as smoothly as _**them."**_

"…yeah, they don't." Rinkah leaned back, grinning. "The Sky Knights can actually fly in formation, unlike your wyverns."

It was true. Wyvern riders, according to Camilla, would always just go in heads first and swing away at where the enemy was. The wyverns themselves were very territorial and didn't like to stay too close to other wyverns. As far as she was concerned, there was never a battalion of wyvern riders as there were just a group of them that was part of the Nohrian army. In comparison, these sky knights could fly close enough to actually toss things to each other and generate casual banter. She couldn't quite hear the details, but the conversation they were having right now were a couple of the fliers were teasing the lone male rider on forgetting his helmet. The blush says everything.

It was then that she realized that someone was looking at her. Her eyes skimmed the sky knights, and saw that one of them in particular was staring right at her. She had short red hair, and her red attire stuck out from the blue armor that the rest of the fliers were wearing. Upon eye contact, she quickly turned away, feeling very awkward. However, the other woman didn't turn her head away. She was still staring at her, as if she was studying her. It was starting to feel very awkward…more so than before.

The redhead called for the knights in order, and ordered all of them to the top of the castle. They flew as quickly as they arrived, to the point where Elizabeth couldn't see them anymore.

 **/=+=/**

 **In case you're wondering, one of Subaki's supports mention that the flying horses in Hoshido are of a different breed than the pegasi that Selena is more aware of. So I decided to name this new species the** _ **"hikoba"**_ **. It literally just means** _ **flying stallion**_ **, don't be too surprised.**

 **I also couldn't find the name of the capital city, only the castle name. So I named it Umaeda.**


End file.
